World Peace Isn't Always Peaceful
by icemann159
Summary: A roller coaster of emotions follows the amazing kiss of Ba Sing Se. It seems that the Avatar's duties are getting in the way of a happy life for Katara and Aang. But don't worry, the suspense, the jealously, the hurt, and the comfort will all be worth it when these lovers, and many others, are finally united. Featuring Kataang *eventually* , Suka, Maiko, and Toph & Teo.
1. Together At Last

**Hey guys! This is my first ever FanFic so bear with me if you don't love the beginning. Please review! I'll take all the praise and criticism I can get. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own AtLa (rats!)**

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Together At Last

Aang gazed deeply into those dark ocean blue eyes, while Katara pierced through his stormy gray ones. Katara leaned ever so slowly in towards Aang and his mind went into overdrive remembering the kisses they had shared throughout their perilous adventures.

_Aang handed Katara the woven necklace that he had worked so diligently on, praying that Katara wouldn't be offended by the replacement. To Aang's delight, the Waterbender accepted the gift graciously, placing it on her neck. She looked _so_ stunning with it on. And as thanks, she kissed him softly, but only on the cheeks. He blushed a deep shape red at the feeling of those cool lips against his burning skin._

_And then in the Cave of Lovers, where he had made such a fool of himself. Why did he have to act like such an idiot around Katara? He had the perfect reason to kiss in that labyrinth; they were running out of light and had no other alternative, no other hope of escape. All he had to do is keep his mouth shut and let Katara do all the talking, but of course he had to ruin that moment, too. What could have been the most romantic kiss ever, turned into the softest peck on the lips ever, he wasn't even sure if they even touched. Ugh! Why did things have to be so complicated with her?_

_Their eyes connected and Aang leaned quickly in to meet Katara's lips, she was caught completely off guard, so Aang pulled away seeing the confusion written on her face and in her eyes. He had been wishing much more considering he may not come back alive. Suddenly, he turned around and glided off the Fire Nation Capital to face Fire Lord Ozai on the Day of Black Sun._

_Once again, Aang went for Katara's lips, he just couldn't stand anymore. Everything in that ridiculous play actually had a piece of truth of it. Katara never seemed to like him as anything more than a brother, and after their time in the catacombs, she didn't act the same way… maybe she _did_ have feeling for Zuko. But this was it, once and for all; Aang would force her to face her feeling by quickly kissing her. Of course this wasn't the best idea and this time Katara pulled back, and at a lost for words, she turned and headed back to the play. _

And then their lips touched.

At first it was tentative, but then it just felt so perfect. Aang pushed harder, feeling the wave of coolness flow from her lips, like a light ocean breeze. Katara smiled at the heat pulsated from the Avatar's soft lips; it was like the sun beating on her face. The heat and coolness of the other complemented and completed them. Aang had been waiting for this moment for quite time, and now that it had finally come, it almost seemed surreal. Was it his imagination or did _Katara_ lean in for the hot, passionate kissed that ensued. This was exactly what the Avatar had been waiting for! Sure saving the world from Ozai was great and all, but he did for one person and one person only, Katara, who was his entire world, he just couldn't imagine one without her. And that is how he was able to fend off and eventually defeat the Fire Lord. Every time the Airbender felt like giving in the fiery inferno, Katara's frightened face would flash before his eyes, and his strength would renew itself. And in this steamy, tongue-wrestling, kiss Aang could see his fantasy of future unfold: long, happy days with Katara beside him the whole time, their children running in the yard, playing with air and water, and growing old with her… _forever and always_. After a few minutes of their sealed lips, they stopped to gasp for air, and in this moment Katara said reluctantly, "We'd better get inside before they get too suspicious."

Aang nodded and replied with, "I supposed you're right." But before they reentered their Ba Sing Se home, Aang softly grabbed Katara's wrist and spun her around until they were face-to-face. "What are we going to tell Sokka?" Aang asked, while his brain simulated all the different possibilities of her brother's reaction to their blossoming relationship.

Katara saw the fear flash quickly across his face and she said, "We don't have to do it right now, we could always wait for a day when he's in a good mood. Which might be a while." They both grinned at Sokka's tendency to harm himself, but Aang shook his head, stating somewhat reluctantly, "I don't want us to be a secret, I have to tell him right now." Katara smiled in agreement, she wouldn't be able to keep her affections for the young Avatar a secret for very long anyways.

They both walked back in and Aang strode right over to Sokka and said softly, "Uhh… Sokka, could I talk to you for a sec, alone?"

Sokka gave Aang an annoyed glanced and looked back and forth from the Airbender to his painting that was supposed to "capture the moment." Sokka grumbled, "This had better be important Airhead, you're distracting me from some very significant artwork here" pointing as his hideous drawings of Gaang.

Aang replied with "Oh yeah… This is pretty important" trying to stifle laughing at that horrifying painting. The two of them walked towards Sokka's room while Aang looked back at Katara who gave him reassuring smile. He knew this had to done, and right now was as good as any.

As the boys walked away, Zuko and Iroh headed outside to talk about his new role as the Fire Lord, leaving the girls alone in the living room. Suki turned to Katara and gave her a toothy grin, which Katara looked at with a questioning face. Suki said in a soft tone, "So… how did it feel?" Katara blushed a deep shade of red and, with a slim smile, said in a girly voice "Oh! You saw all that?" Now Toph laughed and said "Trust me, Sugarqueen, you don't need eyes to know what just happened! Your two heartbeats were enough to make the earth shake!" Now all of them, including Mai, laughed at Toph's comment and after a little bit, Mai repeated Suki's question: "_So_ how did it feel?" Katara's mind warped back a few moments ago while their lips were locked, she didn't know how to explain the overflow of emotions going through her at the time. She was relieved, happy, estactic even, but more than that she was…complete. She decided on one word to describe the feeling of finally kissing the Airbends soft lips, "It felt…_right_." All the girls looked at each other and smiled, that's exactly how it should be. Suki continued with the questions, "So what's your future going to be like with the Avatar as your _boyfriend_?" Suki, Toph, and Mai smiled at the Waterbender's glowing face and racing heart as she thought of the good times she and Aang would have together. And right then, before she could respond, Aang called her name from Sokka's room.

She looked at the girls while they gave her the same reassuring smile that she had given to Aang a few minutes ago. As she walked towards Sokka's room, she continued dreaming about the adventurous and romantic future that she would share with Aang.

When she opened the door, she immediately knew things weren't going well: Aang was on the floor with Sokka across from him. The Airbender was holding his knees with his face buried in them, staring at the floorboards. She looked towards Sokka for some explanation, he responded with sigh and calmly told her to take a seat. She complied and waiting to hear the bad news that Aang had apparently already received. She wondered if for some reason Sokka didn't want them to be together, but it didn't matter, she was a grown girl now, a Master Waterbender, Sokka no longer had a say in her love life, she could make her own decisions.

Sokka saw the look of determination in Katara's face and decided to quickly to tell her what he told to Aang before she could say anything.

"First of all, I want you know that I _am_ happy for the both of you, I know it wasn't easy, especially for Aang, but you two eventually did find each other." _Wait, what?_ Katara thought, _this is going pretty well, why does Aang look so hopeless?_

Sokka continued, "But you both have to realize that those eight months of running around has to come to end. Aang did a fantastic job with mastering the elements and all, but now he has to take on the responsibility of a true Avatar, he has to keep peace throughout all the nations. That'll be a lot of stress by itself and I don't think adding a relationship into that mess is the best idea." Before Katara could interrupt, Sokka kept talking, "And just look at all that mess we've already gotten into. It may not just be Zuko, or Azula, or Combustion Man that comes after Aang now, there could be many more. I know, I know, you guys that just because Ozai was defeated that the world is magically a better, peaceful place, but it's not. Believe it or not, some people enjoyed the 100 years of fighting, their profiting from the arms dealing and government corruption, were talking about people with lots of power that the Avatar just took away from them. They're not going to be pleased when the Avatar waltzes through their town. Think about how Long Feng treated us when we wanted to the Earth King. No, they're going to be looking for revenge and, being the overprotective brother that I am, I don't think Katara should be put in harm's way. Yeah, yeah, yeah," Sokka said, waving off Katara before she could protest, "I know you're _Master_ Waterbender Katara, but I mean it's two of you against potentially a small army of really pissed off people. I just don't want you to get hurt is all, and Aang feels the same way." With his spiel over with, Sokka waited for one of them to start arguing, but it didn't come as quickly as he had expected. He knew Aang would see the logic in all of these, mainly because it _is_ true. The danger they'd faced had been avoided most through flying on Appa and quite a lot of dumb-luck.

This was worse than any other scenario he'd thought up. Aang hoped Sokka would do something stupid, like trying to fight him, or trying to prevent Katara and him from being together. Both of those would have been easier to deal with than the logic that Sokka had just presented. Aang stared at the floor, silently wishing that Sokka had never brought Katara's safety into the mix. But he knew the Watertribe Warrior was right, it was selfish of him not to think of Katara's safety during his Avatar duties. If anything did happen to her during his travels across the nations, he would never forgive himself. A life without Katara would be bad enough, but being responsible for Katara's death would be unbearable. He would never be able to face anyone again; he could imagine the grief in Sokka's face when he learned that his baby sister was no longer alive. Aang could never, _never_, let that happen, even if that meant they couldn't be together. Aang would much rather let Katara go and let her live her own life than risk being together.

Katara glanced over at Aang who seemed to have already made up mind. But Katara couldn't do it; she wouldn't allow her brother to get in the way of her and Aang's beautiful future together. So she decided to speak up, "Sokka you have no right to decide what is safe and what isn't. The fact of the matter is I _am_ a Master Waterbender and I am fully capable of watching over myself! I know being with the Avatar may be difficult, but I love Aang way too much to let that be problem. I would gladly risk my life, _my_ life, to be with Aang." She turned to left hoping that Aang would agree with her.

The Airbender was relieved to hear these words come out of Katara's mouth, but he still knew that if he lost her, that would be the end of happiness in his world, and he couldn't let that happen. Aang raised his head and wiped the single tear off his cheek and looked at Katara, "No. You can't come with me. If-if anything happened to you…" he trailed off as his mind tried to imagine a life without Katara.

The Waterbender looked him straight in his stormy gray eyes "I have as much of a say in this as you do! And I want to be with you no matter what!"

Aang smiled at the passion and bravery that Katara had, one of the many reasons he had fallen in love with this girl, and calmly replied with, "It's great to know you feel that way, but still, being the Avatar will be hard work, and I don't want to have to be constantly worrying about you."

"I am a _Master_ Waterbender, Aang! And I'm as good as you, if not better! You won't have to worry about me at all! Plus, I'm one of the best healers in the world!" Katara shot back.

Aang's lips formed a thin smile again, and he said softly, "No" and with that, walked out of the room.

Katara couldn't believe what had just happened, _had Aang rejected her?_ _Didn't he feel the same way about her that she did about him? That kiss was supposed to be the gateway into our great life as a couple, but now it's-it's just gone! How could this happen?_

Sokka saw the rage building up in his sister and quickly ran out the door before she decided to get violent with him… after all she _was_ a Master Waterbender, and Sokka did not want to be there when Katara unleashes her wrath.

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**Please take a few seconds to review and tell me what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong! Thanks, hope you liked it.**


	2. Heartbreak

**Hopefully you guys liked the first chapter!**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own AtLa**

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Heartbreak

Aang walked straight into his room after leaving Sokka's. He needed time to think all this through. He sat cross-legged on the balcony adjoined to his room and savored the beautiful sunset. He closed his eyes and placed his fists together in front of him in a meditative position. He needed help, and who better to ask than his past lives. He focused on Avatar Roku, knowing that he had a wife. Aang's tattoos began to glow and Roku's shape started to take form in front of him.

"_Hello, Aang" Roku said, in his deep, fatherly tone. "I must say that I am proud of how you dealt with Ozai. Energybending is lost ancient art, but it turned out to be the perfect remedy to your predicament."_

_Aand bowed slightly and accepted Roku's praise, "Thank you, Roku, that means a lot. But I haven't come to talk about Ozai, I've come to ask for more personal advice…"_

_Roku picked up on Aang's aching heart and said softly, "Ahh… You wish to speak of love. All Avatars have this problem eventually, I had the same one with Ta Min. Though love may hurt, it has a habit of working out if it is meant to be."_

_Aang smiled at Roku's comforting, sagely advice, "That's a relief. But what I really wanted to ask you was how Ta Min coped with your death."_

_A dark shadow took a hold of Roku's face as he remembered the heartache that Ta Min had to endure his absence, "It is not a time I am particularly fond of. However, I see that you're point. Many years ago, after I had proposed to Ta Min we a difficult talk about what should happen if I had expired due to my Avatar duties. We talked much on this topic and eventually she accepted the fact that our lives would be in constant peril."_

"_You haven't answered my question."_

_Roku sighed and responded, "Losing a loved one is never easier, however watching the grief and pain of Ta Min from the Spirit World was unbearable. She hardly ever left the house and never allowed anyone into her heart again."_

_Aang had to ask the hard question, "How did she…How did she die, Roku?"_

_Roku hung his head in defeat, and with a whisper he said, "She took her own life. I offer you this advice young Avatar: There can be no love, without pain."_

_And with that Roku's form vanished, but Aang wasn't quite satisfied, he needed more answers. He needed Air Nomad advice, and with that he called on Avatar Yangchen. _

_She appeared before him, and like Roku, she praised his actions with the Fire Lord, "Though your methods were uncommon, but I am glad you were able to handle the Fire Lord without losing yourself at the same time" she said with a smile._

"_Thank you, Avatar Yangchen. Once again, I need you're advice."_

_Yangchen read Aang's heart and said, "Love is a fickle matter. It is difficult for all people, but even more so for us Avatars." Aang gave her a puzzling look, so she continued, "You must realize that as an Air Nomad Avatar, our upraising and our duties can sometimes conflict, as you well know" hinting at the advice she had already given him in regards to dealing with Ozai, "the Monks of the Air Temple reach enlightenment through countless hours of mediation and fasting, in an attempt to separate themselves from the material world around them. However, the Avatar's sole duty is to the material world, it is our responsibility to keep peace in this world and the Spirit World to the best of our abilities. This requires a certain amount of attachment and detachment from the world. Taking a lover as the Avatar can easily cloud your judgment; you will choose her instead of the world. You must remember to consider the well being on the entire world, instead of the well being of those you love. And as such, I offer you this advice young Avatar: Duty over love, is the calling of the Avatar." And then Yangchen disappeared into smoke. _

Aang tattoos slowly began to fade and he slowly crawled into to bed to mull over the advice of his past lives. Just like Sokka, both Roku and Yangchen were right and he resented that. He imagined Katara in Ta Min's position, taking her own life out of grief and depression. Yangchen was also right; after all it was Katara who had given him the strength to win, not the whole world, although he wasn't convinced that was such a bad thing. Without Katara, Aang might have failed against the Fire Lord, but his love for her was strong enough to overcome Ozai. But as Aang thought about it some more, Yangchen was ultimately right. What if someone captured Katara and he was forced to chose between her and the good of everyone, the choice should be simple, but he loved Katara so much he wasn't sure if he could make the right decision. Clearly the lives of the many should outweigh of the lives of the few, but not choosing Katara made his heart break. With these thoughts filling the young Avatar's head, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning after breakfast, Zuko and Iroh made the announcement that they would be returning to the Fire Nation in a few hours to commence the new Peace Movement. Obviously, Mai would be accompanying them back home to the Fire Palace. Iroh added one more thing in his deep voice, "Aang, I expect that you will join us, too? After all, it _is_ the Avatar's duty to maintain peace, and truthfully, a Peace Movement without the Avatar would fail miserably."

Aang froze when he heard these words; he knew this would come eventually, but why did he have to leave right now? Aang wanted to have time to sort through the mess of emotions that he was going through. He had just Energybended Ozai a few days ago and he had to think of a life without the woman of his dreams, and now he needed to make a snap decision that would change his life forever. While Aang was eager to help the world recover, he still wasn't sure about position with Katara, did he want to risk her life, or lead his life alone. Ruko's and Yangchen's advice echoed in his head: _There can be no love, without pain_…_ Duty over love, is the calling of the Avatar_.

Everyone's eyes stared at Aang as they waited for a decision. Katara's eyes were full of hope, despite Aang's departure from last night's discussion. She prayed that he would allow her to accompany him throughout his journey as a Peacekeeper. After all, she had already been with him through thick and thin, and shouldn't that continue into the future? But, secretly, she also wanted to join him for _his_ protection, too. During the months leading up to Sozin's Comet, she had become a powerful Waterbender and a skilled healer, two things that any Avatar could use. Her mind flashed back to the Azula's lightning strike on Aang in the catacombs of Ba Sing Se.

_She couldn't believe what just happened. One second Aang was floating upward with his tattoos and eyes blazing with a heavenly light, and the next, lights out. Aang crashed to the floor while the stench of burnt cloths and skin filled her nostrils. _No! _she thought, _this can't be happening!_ She spent the next few weeks by his bedside, never leaving him. She spent all her energy on trying to heal the ugly scar forming on the Avatar's back, cutting off his Master Airbending tattoos. It was just too much handle, she couldn't even grasp the idea of a life without her Avatar, which was strange because she always conflicting feelings for the young boy. Despite her anger towards Toph, she did sometimes feel like a mother towards Sokka and Aang. But now it was more, with the possibility of a life without Aang, she realized that he was so much more just another Avatar. So in a way, she was grateful for Aang's near-death experience, because it forced her to accept her love for him. Of course it wasn't easy expressing these feelings, especially with the Fire Nation Invasion on its way. She didn't want Aang to be distracted during his battle with Ozai and that is why she refused to cave in to her feeling towards him. But now that Ozai was defeated and the Hundred Years' War was over, she could finally, _finally,_ be with him._

Aang snapped back to reality from his thoughts about last night to scan the eyes around him. Everyone knew that he had to leave, but that didn't mean that he had to leave them all behind, after all, Appa had grown used to carry more passengers. He debated between bring his new family with, bringing only Katara, or simply bringing no one. And after a few minutes thinking, he solemnly accepted the latter. This was his destiny now, to bring peace and happiness to _everyone_, not just those that he loved. It was time to stop being selfish and time to become the Avatar that the world so desperately needed.

Aang stood up from the table, looked Iroh directly in the eyes and said with a determined face, "I'll pack my things and we can take Appa back to the Fire Nation Capital." The Gaang waited to see if he would tell them to pack their things to accompany him, too, but he didn't. He simply turned and walked into his room to gather his pack. Iroh looked to Zuko and said, "Uhh…we need to discuss some more details about the Peace Movement" and with that, the two Firebenders left the house.

The Gaang looked back towards Aang's room and they weren't sure what to do. Normally they would all follow suit, but with the War over, were they still going to be traveling as one unit? No one was exactly sure what to do until Katara stood up. She followed Aang into his room and after a few minutes and asked, "Should we packed our things, too?" She was expecting his childish laugh and he signature grin to put her at ease. She was hoping Aang would say something along the lines of, "Obviously you guys need to pack your stuff! We're _all_ leaving in a few hours." But that's not what she heard.

Aang couldn't look at her directly, so with his back turned to her, he said softly, "I think it would be best if I did this alone."

Katara couldn't believe what she had just heard. _Why is he doing this? Doesn't he want to be with me? How can he willing leave me, all of us, behind?_ Katara swallow her pain and anguish and said, "But…but you don't have to do this alone, we all want to come with you. After all the crap we've been through, we know exactly what we're getting into and we still want to go with you, Aang. Why are you pushing us away like this?" She was hoping that the sleeping on this decision would have changed his mind from last night, but apparently it hadn't.

Aang turned to face Katara, but he still couldn't meet her grief-filled eyes, "Because I've already put you through too much. And I could never forgive myself if anything happened to you, to any of you guys" he said.

Katara's anger was starting to resurface, "You can't do this to us, you can't do this to _me_! After all we've done for you, we deserve to be there with you, as you become a true Avatar. We've all sacrifice so much to get you this far and we want to be there for you! It's like Sokka said, keeping peace is going to be stressful, but it's not we haven't been there before! The few days before the Invasion, you were stressed out of your mind and the only way you were able to calm is because of us! How can you turn your back on us, after all we've done?"

Tears started to form on the Airbender's stormy gray eyes, "It's because of what you all have done, what you all have sacrificed already that I won't let you come. You've given up too much already! You could've been killed multiple times in only the pass few months and I won't subject you that ever again! I want you to be happy, Katara, I really do. And because of that, I can't be selfish anymore, I have to put my feeling for you behind me, so that you and Sokka and Suki and Toph and the rest of the world can have a happy, peaceful life to live, even if it doesn't include me." Aang hoped that Katara would understand his logic; they have been through way too many hardships and losses for one lifetime.

"Why do you have to do this, Aang?" Katara shouted back. "Why do you have always to leap to rescue? Leave it to Zuko and Iroh and King Bumi to help the world! You've already sacrificed you're life against Ozai, isn't that enough?" she screamed.

"No," Aang replied softly, "As the Avatar I must lead the nations with the others so that we began the path of peace."

She hated when Aang pull that Avatar crap, so she stormed out of his room and slammed the door behind her.

She stomped straight to the room and broke down on her bed bawling her eyes out. _He says he wants me to be happy, but can't he see that I won't be unless he's there with me. Maybe…maybe he doesn't feel the same way about me that do about him and this is just his way of telling me that he doesn't want to be with me. Maybe that kiss was mistake after all, and now Aang's using this situation to avoid me. _These types of thought clouded her head, until Suki softly knocked on the door.

Suki knew that Katara won't want to talk about it, but the whole Gaang had heard her screaming at Aang, and Suki felt that she should be for Katara even though the Waterbender wanted to be alone. Suki climbed into bed next to her and softly stroked her back as a mother would to a grieving child. Suki tried to shush Katara and tell that everything would be okay, but of course that was a lie. Truthfully, Suki couldn't imagine a life with Aang either, he was like the glue to the Gaang, and after all, he was the reason that had all come together in the first place. Without Aang and dire need to ride the Elephant Coi Fish, Suki would have never met Gaang, and more importantly, never had met Sokka. She giggled softly as she remembered how silly Sokka acted in front of the Kyoshi Warriors, trying to be all manly. There was just something about Sokka that she found irresistible.

After a while, Katara finally stopped sobbing, long enough for Suki to ask, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Katara took a deep breath in, and gathered her courage and bombarded Suki with all the questions that had been running through her head. Suki held her hands up and said, "Whoa, whoa slow down there, one question at a time."

Katara paused for a breath, and decided on the one question she truly wanted to know, "How can he leave me?"

Now it was Suki's turn to pause to collect her thoughts, "Well he _is _the Avatar, and although it has its perks, it also means he has lots of responsibilities to everyone, and you have to respect that. And, trust me, if there was any way for Aang to take you without being worried sick about you, he would swoop you up and carry you to the Fire Nation Capital. Katara, you have no idea how much he loves you." Katara wanted to throw up at the sound of that, _He doesn't love me, he's just running away from me_.

Suki could see that this tactic wasn't working so she followed with, "Calm down, Katara, it's not like he's leaving forever, he'll be back as soon as he can. And who knows, maybe the time away from you will convince him to take you with him next time," as she gave the Waterbender an encouraging smile. Still nothing. Suki sighed when she thought of what was really bugging Katara, "Are you acting like this because of…because of your father?" Suki was afraid that Katara would go nuts and start attacking her, but she only buried her head deeper into her knees and started to sob again. Suki knew she was hitting a raw nerve, but she needed to push further that Katara could learn to accept that sometimes people have to leave, so the Kyoshi Warrior said, "Well look at him now, Katara. He's back in your life and you two are happier, right? Well the same thing will happen between you and Aang. You both probably need a break, too. I mean you've literally spent the past eight months right next to each other; maybe a break isn't such a bad idea. It'll help clear your mind and that way you can finally sort your feelings out." Katara slowly nodded at Suki's reasoning, wiping the tears on her face.

Katara mumbled, "Thank you, Suki." Suki gave the Waterbender a soft smile and they both left the room.

Even though Aang knew what had to done, it didn't make doing it any easier. It seemed like the spirits were mocking him. He still remembered staring into her eyes, the first pair of eyes he had seen in 100 years, when he was freed from his icy prison. Most of the time, that seemed like a blessing, but now, having to leave her, it seemed more like a curse. Aang had fallen in love with Katara throughout their whole journey, and right when is seemed like they had a shot at happiness, the spirits prevented it from happening. _Couldn't things just go my way for once!_ he though angrily. Still, he knew this was the best for all them; they had been in enough danger traveling with the Avatar.

Sokka decided to follow Suki's example, so he walk into Aang's room hoping to help the Avatar through yet another hard time. But Sokka, needed answers too, "Why don't you want us to come with you?" he asked Aang.

The Airbender sighed softly, and turned around to meet Sokka's eyes, "Before you know it, you and Suki will be engaged, and then married, and then have little Watertribe-Kyoshi Warriors running around the house. Toph might even do the same, if she can find a man who could pick up with constant punching. And even Katara will do this." Pain and jealously quickly flashed across Aang's face as he imagined another man with Katara, but he continued, "Anyways, the point is that if anyone of you gets hurt or worse protecting me, or even traveling with me, that bright and happy future will vanish and be replaced with unbearable sorrow" Aang said, recalling Ta Min's suicide. "And I won't let that happen to any of you."

Sokka opened his mouth to respond, but quickly shut it. The Watertribe Warrior looked at his best friend… he looked different…older, even. That fight with Ozai and Energybending had definitely taken a toll on Aang. But, Sokka was proud of him, he was no longer the goofy little boy they had rescued from the iceberg, he was a true, wise Air Monk, and Sokka regretted that him and Katara wouldn't be able to live a happy life together. But Sokka was also grateful that Aang was selfless enough to leave Katara behind for her safety. Sokka was also proud of himself for handling the situation like a mature adult. Sokka chuckled inside, thinking _Now there's a first_.

After a little bit more packing, Aang looked straight into Sokka eyes and declared, "You will protect Katara with your life," and then Aang left the room with his pack one hand and his glider in the other.

Sokka stared dumbfounded at Aang's back; it was his job to be the obnoxious overprotective older brother, not Aang's. Although it did make sense, after all Aang didn't want Katara with him because he was afraid for her well being. But what's more, the look that Aang gave him made it seem like he was dead sure something bad was going to happen to Katara. Sokka shuddered at the thought of losing his baby sister, but he quickly regained his "manly" composure, _No need to go worrying about things that haven't happened yet, Sokka. That's Katara's job_.

Aang walked in the living room and found Zuko, Iroh, and Mai all packed and ready to go. He said in a determined voice, "Let go, we're leaving."

Zuko and Iroh shared a confused look, they were expecting the rest of Gaang to be coming with them, but Mai quickly filled them in on the fight between Katara and Aang.

Zuko quickly said, "Don't you at least want to say goodbye to—"

"No!" Aang said with a harsh whisper with his back to the three of them, as he walked out the door to the stable where Appa was sleeping.

They all followed him outside, where Iroh yelled after him, "Aang, this is not the right way to leave. After all the pain and suffering your friends have gone through for your sake, don't they at least deserve a proper farewell?"

Aang turned around from Appa and glared at the Dragon of West, "That would just lead to more pain and suffering" he said in a deathly serious tone. Iroh stared back at the Avatar, who although just a few days ago had been victorious against his archenemy, wore the face of defeat. Iroh was about to respond with some more wisdom when he decided against it; one look at Aang's face told him that nothing could change the Airbender's mind. He clearly wanted to avoid the grief that a farewell would bring and Iroh was afraid that if he offered any more advice, that Aang would simply leave on Appa without them on board. So the Retired General sighed and decided it was best to keep his mouth shut.

Aang airbended himself onto Appa's head and look down at the remaining three passengers, waiting somewhat impatiently for them to climb up Appa's tail onto the saddle.

As he sat upon the Sky Bison's head watching them take a seat on the saddle, Momo landed softly on his right shoulder, and Aang imagined the pained look on Katara's face if he said goodbye to her. He just couldn't face her like that, so instead, he decided not to face her at all. When everyone behind him was safely seated, he said in a resigned voice, "Yip yip" and Appa grunted in response waiting for the rest of Gaang to join him.

Aang grow frustrated and yelled, "Appa! Yip yip!" and flicked the reigns attached to the Sky Bison's horns. Appa growled, but conceded and slapped his wide tail against the ground to provide himself with some lift.

As Katara and Suki were leaving the Waterbender's room, they heard a growl from outside. _No!_ Katara thought, _this can't be happening_. Katara gave Suki a fearful look, and Sokka popped his head of out Aang's room, they all realized what was going on outside. They quickly rushed outside with Toph hot on their heels, she felt the ground shake as the ten ton bison slammed his tail on the earth. Katara looked up just in time to see the face of the man she loved. He looked heartbroken, and that's exactly how she felt, too.

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**Don't worry, I know Aang's departure seems cold-hearted and very un-Kataang, but it'll all work out. Please take a few seconds to review me (you don't even need an account)! Tell me the good and bad things in this chapter.**


	3. Separation

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**Disclaimer: for some odd reason, I don't own any of AtLa**

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Separation

Aang hadn't been himself lately; he was constantly distracted during the Peace Meetings. Zuko knew the Avatar was focusing on Katara, who was still back in Ba Sing Se, but the Fire Lord needed Aang to pay attention; all the generals were becoming annoyed with his ceaseless daydreaming. When Zuko would confront Aang about his distractions, Aang would brush him off saying he just needed more sleep, but everyone knew was a lie; Aang would spend hours alone in his bedroom, remembering things about Katara.

Aang just couldn't forget the face of heartbreak on Katara's face while Appa soared upward away from Ba Sing Se to the Fire Nation Capital. He thought saying goodbye to her would have been difficult and painful, but that look on her face was worse than he could have ever imagined. Aang always had to think of something else to avoid the depression of not seeing Katara anymore. He frequently remembered the wonderful kissed they shared in Ba Sing Se. He felt like _such _an idiot for leaving Katara behind, especially when she shared feeling for him, too. It took a whole war for Katara to fall in love with him, but he still managed to screw things up!

Aang knew that the Peace Meetings were important, particularly because he was the Avatar and the only remaining Air Nomad in the entire world. During the meetings he would sit alone under their flag, settling disputes once in a while, offering some advice he had learned at the Southern Air Temple, gazing at the representatives of the other nations: King Kuei and King Bumi of the Earth Kingdom, Chief Hakoda and Chief Arnook of the Water Tribes, and Fire Lord Zuko and his trusted advisor General Iroh of the Fire Nation. As he scanned the familiar faces, his grief grew stronger; he wanted to see his real friends once again. He was sick and tired of the daily, boring meeting and desperately wanted to hear a sarcastic comment from Sokka, a 'loving' punch from Toph, and most of all he wanted Katara. He wanted to feel her cool lips against his burning ones, he wanted to see the way her silky, ebony hair and soft, chocolate brown skin shimmered in the moonlight when she waterbended, and he wanted to lose himself in her beautiful, ocean blue eyes, her intense bravery and passion. Being away from her for all this time was harder than facing the Fire Lord! Every waking and sleeping moment was devoted to her and the way she made him feel. Whenever he was feeling particularly lonely, he would remember _the kiss_.

That was the only thing that sustained him for all those weeks alone. That one, glorious kiss was the expression of their love for each other, but it was even more; it was relief that the war was finally over, that they could open a new chapter in their lives as couple, that they could look forward to a much brighter future together. And now that future lay shattered in a million pieces, reflecting Katara's heartbroken face. Though Aang had dreams that he would return to the Gaang and they would welcome back with open arms, he knew that it would be too good to be true. He had royally screwed them over, during the past few weeks Aang had seen no actions, no violence, and no threats against him at all. His one reason for rejecting Katara and the others wasn't even valid anymore; he didn't have to worry about their safety. Even though this revelation should have eased the pain, it only made it worse. Once again the spirits were mocking him; he thought he made such a difficult, selfless choice and now, it was all for nothing. He tried to be the detached monk that he had been raised to be, but it seemed like a joke to him now. Nothing was going right for the Avatar anymore, his life had hit a low point, which drove him even crazier! This was supposed the glorious beginning to an era of peace and prosperity and the only thing he could think about was Katara and he sorely missed her.

The other representatives noticed Aang's out of ordinary melancholy and they all felt pity for the young Airbender. Aang had been through so much recently and he still only 12 years old! So they decided have a secret meeting without the Avatar to discuss how to proceed

Zuko started the meeting late one night, when Aang retired early. The Fire Lord began with, "Okay, this meeting has to be short, Aang'll notice our absence rather quickly so I'm just going to cut to the chase." Zuko looked powerful in his new Fire Lord garb and his menacing scar. He continued, "Aang has become one of my best friends and I feel pity for his situation. You have all meet the Avatar previously and surely you know something is deeply bothering him. Iroh and I both believe Aang's disappointment lies in the absence of his close friends. Keep in mind Aang is still quite young; in a perfect world he still wouldn't know that he is the Avatar. To make matters worse, he is the last of his people," Zuko said with some shame in voice, he still couldn't believe that the Fire Nation could attack the Air Nomads in such a manner. Zuko continued, "I propose that Aang should be given a leave of absence to catch up with his friends and get his mind focused again. Hopefully you all can see the wisdom in this motion."

A murmur broke out across the room after Zuko took a seat under the Fire Nation Flag next to his uncle. All the members felt a similar way; Aang had done so much for them recently. He had single-handedly defended the Northern Water Tribe for Chief Arnook, he had opened King Kuei's eyes the rest of world, he had been a great friend for King Bumi back in the day, and he had been blessing to keep Chief Hakoda's safe and happy. Iroh saw Aang as the blessing that helped his nephew become the proper Fire Lord he was today. Without Aang, Zuko would still be a sulking, banished prince hell-bent on restoring his "honor."

The member's quickly voted and accepted Zuko's proposal. Aang would return to Ba Sing Se to be reunited with his new family after six long weeks of intense discussion regarding the Peace Movement. Of course, everyone had their doubts, too. Although Aang had been constantly distracted, he had been a reliable source of wisdom and compromise during the meeting. Being the Avatar and the last Airbender gave Aang quite a lot of quite authority that the members had grown to respect. Now that he was leaving, many members worried that the compromises would stop flowing and the meetings would become a place of chaos instead of order.

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The Gaang saw the way Katara moped around the house recently. They knew it was because of Aang's hasty departure and there was nothing they could do to make her feel better. Suki tried to go shopping to take the Waterbender's mind off of Aang, but she would only half-heartedly browse the windows and shops of Ba Sing Se. Toph offered to fight Katara hoping that a life threatening situation would snap her out of it, but she would just waved the Earthbender off saying that she was much too tired to fight her. Sokka actually tried to be a good big brother and offered to talk with her about Aang leaving them. He chuckled as he remember he had attempted the same thing when Aang was freaking out before the Day of Black Sun. Unfortunately, the result was similar, Katara continued sulking everywhere they went.

Finally, Toph felt she had come with the perfect plan. Toph met with Suki and Sokka after Katara retired early one day, and, outside at the fountain, she pitched her idea to the couple.

"I was thinking that we could open a training center for Earthbenders and other aspiring warriors. Obviously, I would whip the Eartherbenders into shape," she said, punching her right fist into her left hand, "and the non-benders could go with you guys to learn the ways of the sword and fan," she said with a sarcastic grin on her face. "And maybe Katara could teach Waterbenders at the center…" she trailed off hoping "the plan guy" could help better the idea.

Sokka thought for a few seconds and then said, "That's a great idea, Toph. I'm sure the Peace Movement could use lots of talented and dedicated warrior to fight against the rebellion that will surely come. Only one thing, there aren't many Waterbenders left in the world, let alone in the Earth Kingdom Capital." Sokka stopped; hoping that one of them could find a better idea on how to keep his sister occupied.

Suki spoke up, "Maybe we could send word to the Northern Water Tribe. Didn't you guys say that it was strictly forbidden for women to bend there?"

Sokka replied, "Well, not anymore. After Katara proved Master Pakku wrong, he has been reluctantly taking female pupils."

Suki started to get excited, "That's perfect! There must be lots of Waterbender, young and old that would much rather learn fighting and healing under Katara than that misogynistic Pakku. And because it's finally okay for the women to bend, nothing can stop them from traveling to Ba Sing Se to unlock their potential."

Sokka stared at his girlfriend with his open mouth for a few seconds and then said, "Suki, you're beautiful _and_ brilliant!" He leaned over to her and kissed her on the cheek. Toph just sat there with a disgusted look on her face.

Sokka noticed Toph's revulsion and cleared his throat to set them back on track, "Alrighty, so it's settled! We'll open a training center for new Waterbenders, Earthbenders, swordsmen and women, and Kyoshi Warriors!"

The three all exchanged grins at they're brilliant idea. Sokka continued, "Just a few more things: number one, how the hell are we going to get word all the up to the Northern Water Tribe, two, where the hell are we going to get the money to buy and supply a training center, and third, and most important…what the hell are we going to name it?"

Toph stood up with a triumphant grin on her face, "Leave the first two things to me, you both can to do the creative, artsy-fartsy naming thing."

The couple stared at her with questioning look, and although she couldn't see their faces, Toph knew exactly what they were thinking and she said, "You guys are forgetting that I'm not just the Blind Bandit and the Runaway, I'm Toph _Beifong_. So you little prissies decide on a name and I'll do the real work…as usual," she finished under her breath with a thin smile and then she turned to walk into town.

The couple shrugged and headed back in the house, very quietly so as not to wake Katara.

The next day, over the breakfast, the Suki and Sokka broke the news to Katara, hoping that she wouldn't be suspicious about the sudden, well thought out plan that had conveniently prepared. But, thankfully, Katara saw the opportunity and decided it was a good idea, she was looking forward to teaching new women recruits, she didn't think Pakku would do a very good job with them anyways. It had been a while since she had practiced her bending and quite truthfully, training other pupils was the best training for her.

She smiled as she recollected teaching the first bit of waterbending to Aang. She couldn't believe that she hadn't fallen in love with him quicker, he was the so compassionate, loving, and so fun to be around. She savored the intimate moment they shared when she pushed closed to him to fix his waterbending stance. She drifted back into a daydream about his wise, stormy gray eyes. So much love and fire resided in those eyes; she could just stared in them endlessly. But, she quickly pushed the image of his eyes out of her head, remembering what he had done to her only a few weeks ago.

She still wasn't entirely sure that she could forgive him. After all, he just up and left, not even so much as a goodbye! Considering at the messes they've been through together, she at least deserved to look him in the eye one last time. But still, she missed him so much every day, if did come back, it would be only a matter of time before she couldn't resist him. She tried to let him go multiple times, but she just couldn't! She was still holding on to some inkling of hope that things would return to normal if Aang would just come back. She had been wallowing in self-pity for a long time now; perhaps this training center was just the thing to keep her mind off the Airbender.

Toph had been up all night organizing messenger hawks and transport ships bound for the Northern Water Tribe. She was excited to teach more Earthbenders in addition to kicking some more butt! It had been quite some time since she had a real fight and she missed the adrenaline coursing through her, the thrill of fight was unique in that way. This made her miss Aang, too; the Avatar was the only person that she could unleash her full force on without worrying about his safety. Toph was pleasantly surprised at Aang's growing skill in earthbending, although teaching him the basics was impossible. She laughed at Aang's feeble attempts to move a boulder when she first joined the group.

Speaking of which, she needed to visit her parents, firstly to access the funds necessary to launch their training center, but most importantly because she secretly missed them. Even though they treated her a pitiful, defenseless girl, it _was_ nice to have people constantly worry about you. Worrying was their form of expressing love for their daughter. Now was the perfect time to pay them visit. She needed to tell them that she was in fact sorry for running from them, but they needed to know that they didn't give her any other choice. They forced a mediocre teacher on her and they even lied about having a daughter, what type of parents keeps their daughter secret from the entire world? It would difficult to forgive them, but Toph knew that it had to done; she needed to move on and hopefully, her parents could, too. But first, she needed to head home and sleep like a rock.

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	4. Practice

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**Disclaimer: it appears that I don't own a single shred of AtLa**

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Practice

Aang had been planning his arrival to Ba Sing Se for quite some time now. After he got the great news from the Council he immediately ran to the streets of the Fire Nation Capital to purchase the things he needed. He was so elated that he almost forgot to cover his tattoos with his Fire Nation hat. He had bought that hat shortly after he had arrived at the Capital, because he resented the attention he would receive when he would stroll through neighborhoods. Girls would giggle around him, storeowners would pushed him into their shop to offer some free token of their appreciation, if he ever did want to buy something, the owner would refuse his payment. Of course, he was grateful that the shopkeepers offered their merchandise, but he didn't free right about leaving the owner empty handed. Most of them would say something along the lines of, "I need no money, having the Avatar in my humble store is more than enough payment." And then after he would leave, they would post a sign on their store when read in big, red bold letters, "AVATAR APPROVED!"

That also unsettled him, always being called the _Avatar_. It was such a detached label for him, like he just another bender in a _long_ line of special people. They seemed to fuse Aang with all of his past lives and he felt that it was a title that he didn't really deserve. Well obviously he defeated Fire Lord Ozai, but he hadn't done any real Peace work yet. He was hoping that after he made a big change in the world, they would recognize him as Aang, not just _the Avatar_.

Aang was sure to pay all the storeowners the proper price and a bit extra to help their families. Aang had run into enough needy families to know that storeowners were much too proud to show their poverty. He quickly bought a uniform from the Fire Nation Academy, which was tricky to get his hands on without playing the Avatar Card; he convinced the salesclerk that it was for his young brother, Kuzon. He also purchased a dark red cloak with a huge hood that he could cover his face with. Strolling through the Fire Nation market, he couldn't believe his eyes when he saw sea prunes in one of the crates. It was a good sign that the nations were intermingling, but even more important, Katara loved them. He searched high and low for other Water Tribe delicacy, but when he couldn't find any, he decided to buy some ingredients for an Air Nomad classic, fruit pies. He could vividly remember the days him and Monk Gyatso would practice their aim by shooting their pies across the Air Temple. He sighed, as he silently missed his old friend and the rest of carefree, humorous Air Nomads. _Hopefully, the Gaang can stop me from being homesick_, he thought.

He spent the rest of week rigorously training with the Council members. Iroh begrudgingly taught Aang how to Lightningbend, which he picked up a lot faster than Zuko. The Fire Lord envied that the Avatar could "split energy" as uncle Iroh put it. However, Iroh was quite pleased that Aang could feel the energy around them; it was a good sign for the budding Avatar. Aang and King Bumi worked on their Metalbending, which neither of them were too good at, but it was a useful skill, just look at all the times Toph used it to get them out of sticky situations. He even asked Chief Hakoda for a few Water Tribe Warrior lessons. To Aang's surprise, Hakoda accepted. The Avatar wasn't sure how the Chief would react, considering he abandoned his daughter a few weeks ago. Aang was relieved that Hakoda was willing to teach him. To keep up with his Airbending, Aang challenged Appa to a race across the city. Many people on the ground pointed up and gawked at the Sky Bison and the Avatar flying swiftly side-by-side. Aang and Appa splashed down at one of beaches and Aang yelled, "It's a tie!" and laughed as Appa floated on his back, resting from the speedy race.

At the end of week, Aang challenged all of the Council members a fight at sundown. They looked skeptical, but they indulged Aang, seeing as how he leaving in a few days. However, Chief Arnook and King Kuei didn't feel comfortable enough to attack the Avatar, and quite honesty, they were no match for Aang, so they decided to watch instead.

Outside, at dusk, in the courtyard of the Fire Palace, Aang sat mediating as the Masters stood around him in a circle. They had all removed their ceremonial garb that they wore to the meeting and instead donned their much more comfortable sparring clothes.

Zuko made the first move, he altered his weight to his front leg, and Aang smirked with eyes closed, feeling the ground shift beneath the Fire Lord. In a split second, Aang Airbended himself from sitting position to twenty feet above ground, as Zuko's fireball sailed underneath the Avatar, almost frying King Bumi who swiftly sidestepped the blaze. Then, all at once, the Masters unleashed their fury.

The moment Aang landed, King Bumi sent a volley of medium-sized boulders at him, while General Iroh sent an inferno in the Avatar's directions. Aang hit the ground and quickly look up at the incoming rocks; he swiftly redirected them at Iroh hoping the fire would act as a smokescreen. And then, with only a few seconds to spare, split the Iroh's inferno right down the middle with hands point forward towards the ground. Iroh didn't even have time to react to the boulders flying from his fire attack and when the smoke cleared, Iroh laid belly up with the boulders scattered about him. Zuko looked over at his uncle, trying to see if his hurt, but thankfully Iroh sat up, starting laughing, and holding his hand up said, "I honorably accept defeat, young Avatar Aang," and then walked over to join Arnook and Kuei on the sidelines. Before Aang had time to reply, Zuko jumped in the air and lashed out with his right foot, sending a stream of fire at Aang. The Avatar thrust his hand together and sent a wave of air that pushed the fire and Zuko off to the side. Aang barely had enough time to breathe when he felt footsteps closing in behind him. Without looking, he bended the water from the grass around him and flung it behind him and quickly froze it. When Aang turned around, he saw the blade of Chief Hakoda's sword hanging only inches away from his face. Aang breathed a quick sigh of relief before King Bumi attacked once again. Bumi stomped the ground and a pillar of earth shot Aang into the air while Bumi kicked some more boulders, as if he was hunting bird with rocks. Aang narrowly avoided the boulders in the air, and had soon he hit the ground he sent out a whirlwind of air around him. When the gust hit Bumi, he barely moved and the King sent more attacks at Aang. Now on the ground Aang made his air scooter and nimbly dodged the boulders from Bumi and the fireballs from Zuko. He let the scooter dissipate when he was right in the middle of the two. He stared at Zuko, hoping that Bumi's heavy Earthbending footsteps would alert him if the King tried to attack. After a few seconds, Aang smiled at his good fortune, just as Zuko was winding up to unleash more fire, Bumi was shifting his weight to his back foot to kick some more boulders. The Airbender waited until both men attacked and then he opened the ground underneath him, fell in, and then sealed it above his head. In the pitch darkness, he could feel the earth shake overhead, and after a few seconds, he spun upwards and broke the surface to examined his handiwork. Zuko looked just like his uncle, belly up with dirt and boulders covering him, while Bumi had his clothes and some hair singed, Chief Hadoka was still encased in ice, and Iroh, Kuei, and Arnook clapped at Aang's shocking success. He took a mocking bow and thanked his "audience" for their time. Slowly Zuko and Bumi stood up and Aang Airbended the dirt of the Fire Lord and smothered the embers on his old friend's clothes. Aang walked over to Hadoka and released him from the ice, smiling at the irony of freeing Katara's father from his icy prison.

Iroh stood up from his seat and said, "Aang, I must say I am quite impressed with your talents. Although you are young, you have bested us Masters who have had many years of experience. You are very resourceful and clever, using my ally's attack against me and even using my own attack to your advantage. I am glad you are taking your training seriously, but why did you do so all of sudden? I mean, the first few weeks you hardly bended at all, but this past week it seemed like you were preparing to fight my brother again," he finished with a hearty laugh, hoping the others would take the joke lightly. Aang smiled at Iroh, and replied with, "Trust me, Iroh, I'm expecting much worse in the near future."

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After a few days of running the new training academy, Sokka, Katara and Suki decided to take Toph out for a little treat as a thanks for making this dream possible. They were all shocked when they saw the academy that Toph spent days trying find and improve.

It was a beautiful, 40-acre plot of land in the Lower Ring that was enclosed by a thin row dorms so that the students could stay 24/7. The inner courtyard was split into four 10-acre rectangles for specialized fighting. One for Earthbending that had boulders of all sizes scattered throughout it. One for Waterbending that had streams and even a small lake inside it in addition to meadow. One for swordsmen that had training equipment along with rows of swords along its walls. And one for Kyoshi Warrior training, which came complete with sturdy fans, suits of armor, and other Kyoshi essentials. Needless to say, everyone was incredibly impressed with Toph's work and they were all eager to teach their pupil in such a wonderful facility, which still remained nameless.

Toph had tried to come up with a name that conveyed a certain bit of tranquility and yet still was intimidating, so she proposed "Peaceful Pulverizers" as the name for their academy. Katara offered something more practical, "Ba Sing Se Training Academy," but Sokka shot down both of these ideas, claiming that the first one made no sense and that the second was much too bland.

Toph had done a fantastic job with recruiting members of the Northern Water Tribe. Within a few days of setting their equipment up, literally boats loads of female Waterbenders pulled into harbor at Ba Sing Se, eager to finally learn some bender from Master Katara. Stories about her were still told in the Northern Water Tribe, Katara was the girl who defeated Master Pakku. The new benders were old and young, some ready fight, other ready to heal, some were even good enough to be Masters, which Katara was relieved about. She couldn't imagine teaching them _all_ bending and healing! That would just take way too much energy. So instead, she decided to rigorously train five other Waterbenders to ease the workload, and although it took a lot of effort, she was pleased at the results. She was also happy that training them was so time consuming that she no longer thought of Aang constantly.

The other three noticed the change in Katara, too. Finally, she wasn't just sulking everyday; she now had something productive to do with her time. They were all really impressed on how fast and well she taught her other Masters. They were hoping to follow Katara's example and, with any luck, they could find some more teachers to help them.

After word got out that Ba Sing Se had a training academy for both benders and non-benders, there was a constant waiting list for people trying to learn from the Masters. Sokka and Suki were having a blast teaching the little kids how to fight in a dignified way. Sokka passed on the knowledge that he had learned during his travels and from Master Piandao. He taught them how to use their surroundings to their advantage, but he didn't force the kids to paint a beautiful scene on the mountaintop, which he still didn't quite understand the relevance of. Quite frankly, Sokka wasn't sure why Master Piandao forced him to make a rock garden either, but he was certain that the Master knew what he was doing, and so, if the children were good, he would sneak them into Toph's arena to mess around her rocks in order to express themselves. Of course Toph wasn't pleased that they were moving rocks around as an art form, but what did she care? It took her all of a few seconds to reset the boulders back to normal.

Toph was even thoughtful enough to build in a little blacksmith shop so that Sokka could teach his pupils how to craft their own sword. He was proud of them, their swords were beautiful _and _deadly, although nothing could compare to his space sword. He tried fruitlessly to forge another sword like that, but there was no metal that seemed light enough and strong enough at the same time.

While, in the next arena over, Suki was teaching both guys and girls the way of the Kyoshi Warrior; how to use your enemies force against them. And if they behaved well, "Master" Sokka, and "Master" Suki would don their Kyoshi Warrior armor and fight to show them some more advanced moves. The kids loved watching how they deflected blows and then quickly returned them.

Toph was also pleasantly surprised at the turn out of Earthbenders, she figured they would be tons of Earthbending teachers in Ba Sing Se, but apparently she had become a legend. Tales of the blind girl who could see with her feet spread throughout the Earth Kingdom Capital along with how she was so strong she could even bend _metal_. She received pupils of all talents, some who just learning how to move pebbles and others were on their way to becoming Metalbenders themselves. However, no one seemed to be able to understand how to feel the vibrations of the ground. Aang was the only one who could come even remotely close to Toph's "seeing" feet.

Even some of their old buddies came to the now popular training center. The Duke and Pipsqueak visited in the early days of the academy. They figured it would be a good way to catch up with the Gaang and learn some new fighting moves; they heard word that some people were organizing a rebellion near their forest and they wanted to be prepared if things got ugly.

Sokka nearly burst out laughing the first time Pipsqueak held a five-foot long sword that looked like a toothpick compared to his immense size. Teaching him the ways of the swordsman was quite difficult considering his lack of agility, but some how he turned out to be half-decent with a blade; swinging his logs around for a couple years probably helped him adjust to the sword.

A few days later Haru and Teo arrived at the academy. They both helped run the center smoothly. Haru was becoming a phenomenal Earthbender and taught along side with Toph, which made showing offense and defense much easier for her. It was difficult to demonstrate proper blocking technique without someone to attack you and she was grateful that Haru had agreed to help at upon the academy.

Teo assisted Sokka and Suki by creating rudimentary sparing bots, essentially a dummy that would flail around so the pupils could practice defending themselves. This way, Sokka and Suki could walk around while the pupils were using the bots and give out helpful pointers that wouldn't have been able to do otherwise.

One afternoon, the Gaang decided to give their students off to rest and relax. Truthfully, the Gaang needed the break as much as the kids did. Though they acted mature while teaching, the Gaang members were still only teenagers. That afternoon they decided to head out to the more open land of the Ba Sing Se. They decided to spend their free time near hill with a dense forest and a beautiful stream running alongside it. Sokka planned a romantic picnic with Suki off near a willow tree. Teo and Toph talked excitedly off by the stream. Pipsqueak and the Duke were playing in the nearby woods. And that left Katara and Haru together, all alone. She glanced at the Earthbender and blushed slightly; he had grown even more since the Invasion. He had become more toned due to the hours of training of his pupils and it definitely showed. His muscles were more define and Katara took notice, blushing even harder. Maybe she _could_ let go of Aang, of course it would a _long_ time before she could ever love someone the way she loved Aang. But maybe if she just gave Haru a chance, her heartache would disappear.

And that's when the shadow descended from the heavens.

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**Don't worry Kataang lovers, they will be no Katara & Haru, I promise. I'm just doing it because I feel that jealously and such would strengthen Katara's and Aang's love for each other. And quite frankly, I don't enjoy the idea of Aang and Katara being hopelessly in love...yet. Trust me, they'll fall deeply in love in the near future.**

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	5. Arrival

**Thank for your reviews! Hoping you'll enjoy this one, it's mostly a fight scene. But don't worry, the next chapter will have some Kataang moments (some).**

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Arrival

The shadow fell with its back to ground until the very last second, and then, as if time stood still, it spun around and slammed into the earth with its fist sending a wave of rocks in all directions. Toph felt the jolt of the earth and quickly ran up to the cloaked figure, breaking the rock wave so the others, especially Teo, wouldn't get hurt. Then she raised her hands and yelled, "What the heck was that for?" The rest of Gaang quickly stopped what they were doing and joined in a circle around the shadow, waiting for a response. But the only reply they got was a volley of rocks aimed at their heads.

Katara swiftly bent the water from the stream and froze the rocks bound for her and Sokka. Suki nimbly avoided the projectile, and Pipsqueak smacked the boulders headed for him and the Duke with his bare hands. Haru swatted the rock out of the air and Toph froze the rocks directed at her and Teo. She brought the rocks the together and slowly revolved the two piece of earth around her head and asked once more, "What do you want from us?" The shadow stood still for a second, and then pointed to the beautiful Waterbender; instinctively, Sokka unsheathed his sword and stepped between the shadow and his sister, as if to protect her from this monster. The figure walked quickly toward Sokka, who ready to swing at the dark form if it took another step toward his baby sister. The shape froze for a second, looking into the brave eyes of the Water Tribe Warrior, and then continue to walk to Katara. In a split second Sokka swung his newly crafted blade at the shadow hoping to get to the bottom of this mystery. The figure simply raised its hand, caught the broadside of the blade and squeezed it tightly until the metal bent under his fingers. He then yanked the sword towards Sokka, turning the blade into a "U" shape, and then in one fluid motion, grabbed his warrior outfit and flung him off to the side. The rest of the Gaang stood there stunned at what had just flashed before their eyes. One second Sokka was slashing his lethal blade, the next; he was fifteen feet away eating dirt. Katara stood a few paces away from the shadow and took a few more cautious steps backward and assumed her Waterbending stance, ready to take on the assailant. The rest of Gaang filled the space ready to protect Katara at all costs. The shadow waited patiently for the Gaang to gather their courage and take their stance.

The figure took a few steps at Toph, who was standing closest to him. She put her hands down for a moment and opened her mouth to say something, but the shadow capitalized on this and suddenly kicked his leg in a semi-circle and sent a boulder from the left barreling into her side. She went down with a grunt and slowly losing consciousness. The remaining Gaang members gawked at what just happened, no one, _no one_ beat Toph, especially that quickly. Toph would fight for hours before losing a match to a Master twice her age.

The nonbenders quickly lost morale, but stood their ground nonetheless. Pipsqueak unsheathed long sword handing it to the Duke, the giant had picked up a massive log in the forest and prefer the club to his sword. The Duke looked at the sword skeptically, he drew in a quick breath and grasped the blade with both hands. It instantly fell to ground and the Duke looked around helplessly for another, more manageable weapon. Just as Pipsqueak was about to pick up the sword to duel wield the blade and log, the shadow leaped in the air and slammed into the ground, making one large pit and another smaller one underneath the Freedom Fighters. They both fell into the holes and when they reached the bottom, they jumped and clawed for the surface, but neither of them could make it.

Suki glanced from the two pits that had swallowed her friends, back to the cloaked figure, which was closing in on her. She calmly gathered her courage once again and waited until it was in striking range and that she give it a taste of her fury. She lunged and attacked with a barrage of quick short jabs that the shadow nimbly avoided. Growing frustrated at the shadow's inhuman agility, she moved closer to land a bigger hit. She feinted with her left and punched hard with her right fist at the shadow's chest with all her might. The figure didn't fall for the fake; it waited for her right arm and then turned to avoid the blow, and it pushed her right fist away, throwing her off balance. Speedily, he placed his two hands on her side and sent her flying in the direction of Sokka.

Teo gulped, looking at the scattered bodies of his friends around, listening to the moans of pain ushering from them. He had to fight the urge to turn and wheel away; instead he figured this would be the perfect time to try out his new and improved wheelchair. Teo squared up his target and pressed a button on the underside of his armrest. Two barrels popped out of the armrests and sprayed the dark form with hot blaze of fire. The figure jerked one wrist upward, in front of it, with its fingers dangling downwards and raised a wall of earth to meet the fire.

Haru took this moment to attack; he unleashed a volley of five boulders at the shadow, hoping that it was too preoccupied with Teo's inferno. The figure just stood there, letting four of the five rocks slammed into the dark form, but it didn't budge. As the fifth rock approached, it caught the projectile, spun around, using the initial speed and hurled the rock back at the Earthbender. The rock smashed into his stomach and he skid across the ground until coming to rest at the edge of forest.

After Teo ran out of fire, he pushed a few more buttons and two sharp blades erupted on either side of his wheelchair. He had spent weeks putting those two in and, with those working perfectly, he could finally test his crown jewel, his rocket booster. After a few more buttons and with a metallic screech, the booster popped out of the back of his wheelchair. But before the rocket could ignite, the shadow ran up to the paralyzed boy, thrust both hands downwards, and sunk Teo and his tricked out wheelchair ten feet in the ground. Teo looked up at the opening above him and banged his arms on his wheelchair, frustrated that even though he wasn't hurt, he still couldn't help Katara.

The Waterbender had stood by as she watched her friends, one by one, get thrown off in various directions. Now it was just the cloaked figure and Waterbender, but she definitely wouldn't go down without a fight, especially after all they had sacrificed for her. She bent all the water from the stream and even some more from the greenery around her. She waited for shadows next move. From roughly twenty feet away, the shadow could see the determination in those beautiful, mystifying ocean blue eyes. It took off in a sprint at her, and she shot out a wave of water in its direction. The figure slowed down for a second, waited for the surge to come closer, and then thrust its hands upward, forcing a pillar of earth to send it flying over the wave. Before the shadow could reach the ground, Katara sent out four separate water-whips, one for each limb. She smiled triumphantly when the water coiled around its arms and legs, and she forced the figure to the ground. The shadow stay there for a few moments, catching its breath and carefully deciding its next move. She used the rest of the water to incase the shadow in ice, leaving just its hooded head expose. . She smiled confidently as she strode over to the shadow, ready to unmask this villain. But before she could, the figure took a deep breath out, and melted the ice and separated the water drops into a thick fog.

Katara froze, _Did he just…WATERBEND?_ She thought, _No, it can't be_.

And right then, she felt those lips that she'd been aching for the past few weeks. Their soft touch, the warmth flowing through her body, it was just like she had remembered it. She savored the feeling of his lips against hers, and she about to push closer into him to deepen the kiss when she remembered the grief and depression that he had put her through. The memory of having her heart cut out when Aang left was still fresh. The Airbender couldn't be forgive so easily, and so she quickly pushed him off of her and settled the fog to see the damage that he had done during his dramatic entrance, hoping she could avoid talking about her feelings. Too many emotions were running through her, and the kiss didn't help at all! She needed time to sort out feelings, _again_.

Aang looked around at his carnage. Suki had picked up Sokka and inspected him to make sure that he was all right, while the Water Tribe "Warrior" ignored her and instead sobbed over his mangled blade. Toph had rescued Teo, Pipsqueak, and the Duke from the pits in the ground. When the giant arrived back to the surface, he looked around, walked over to a still unconscious Haru, and slung him over his shoulder. When they all gathered together they looked worried about how close the shadow and Katara were standing_._ Aang saw their fearful looks and pounded his fists together, Airbending the dark red cloak off of him, revealing his Air Nomad uniform. The Gaang stood there with their jaws dropped, everyone except Katara and Toph.

Toph raised her hands and shouted, "I _knew _it was you, Twinkletoes! I was just about to tell everyone when flung that boulder at me! That was low, Aang, real low."

The Avatar responded in a mocking tone, "Hey, it worked didn't? You shouldn't have let down your guard, _Blind Bandit_."

Suki follow up saying, "Well that explains how you beat me, you fought like a true Kyoshi Warrior, Aang. I'm proud of you."

Aang bowed to accept her praise. He looked over at Teo and, with eyes shamefully lowered, said, "I'm sorry about putting you in that ditch, Teo."

Teo replied with a smile, "It's no biggie, Aang. Actually, you helped give another idea for my wheelchair, a booster on the _bottom_. That way I shoot up in the air and glide anywhere I want, just like you!" Aang grinned at Teo's ingenuity and intelligence.

Sokka yelled at Aang, "And what about my sword? I spent hour upon hour building it and you just destroyed it!"

Aang looked down at the ground and said, "I know Sokka, and I'm really sorry. I just wanted to see if I could Metalbend swords." Aang chuckled a little and said with a grin, "I guess I can!" And then looked back at Sokka and continued his solemn apology, "How about I help make you a new one? We can find the perfect metal for your sword and can help bend it into shape so you won't have to waste time forging it."

Sokka thought about for a few moments, it didn't feel right just having a blade created for you, spending hours helped you connect with the sword, but after what had happened to his past two sword he figured he could a break from forging blades. Sokka finally agreed, "Yea, sure, whatever, Aang. That'll work." He was still griping about his twisted blade.

Pipsqueak looked at the Duke and said in his deep, burly voice, "We need to find smaller for you to use," still trying to contain his laughter. The Duke stared angrily at the ground, mumbling about just because he was small didn't mean he couldn't use a normal-sized weapon. Haru started to moan from atop the giant's shoulder, so Pipsqueak gently placed him on the ground.

Katara bent some water from the stream around her hands, and walked over to Haru. She placed her hands on his temple and breathed slowly, in and out, as her hands started to glow. Haru slowly regained consciously, and then his eyes flew open ready to attack the shadow. He sprang on his feet and kick up some rocks in front of him to hurl at the enemy. But he when looked around, he didn't see the shadow anymore, instead his eyes fell on Aang and he dropped the rock back to the ground. He let out a sigh of relief and said, "Thank god it was you, Aang. I really thought you were after Katara or something. When I saw you didn't even bother to block my attacks, I knew I was done for and then you sent my last rock flying back at me and—" His hand shot up to hold his head, which still ached a little, and Aang stepped forward to help lower him back to the ground. Then Aang apologized, "I'm really sorry, Haru! I wasn't really paying too much attention to the rock, I kinda just shot it in your general direction, I didn't think I'd actually hit you with it." Haru smiled and said, "It's my fault, I should've been ready for anything considering what you did to the other guys." Then they all laughed at how Aang single-handed demolished the Gaang. Aang tried to be humble and said, "Well, to be fair, you guys had no idea what you were up against. I'm sure if you guys knew it was me, you wouldn't have held back and I wouldn't have stood a chance."

They figured that was the true, if Combustion Man had fallen from the sky they all would have jumped into actions and attacked him with everything they had.

Night had fallen around them, and Katara said, "Guys, we'd better get back to academy. You never know what the kids might do without a single teacher there." They all nodded in agreement and packed up their things to head back to the training center.

But Aang just stood there, and said, "Wait a minute! You guys opened your own training academy. And you guys are teachers there?" Katara looked back at Aang, afraid he might be hurt that decided to open a new chapter in their lives without him. But then he finished, "_And I still beat you all?_" They all cracked a grin at the Airbender's joke and then made their way back to dorms.

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**Tell me how I did on the action sequence! Did you like it? Or were you hoping for more romance and such? Review, please!**


	6. Morning

**Thanks once again for your reviews guys! This ones mostly about Aang's reunion with the rest of the Gaang. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: would you look at that, i don't own AtLa!**

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Morning

Aang woke up as the sun broke over the horizon. He took a breath in, savoring the taste of fresh air. It's not that he wasn't outside in the Fire Nation, it just that the air there was always hot and stuffy. The Earth Nation air, especially where the training center was, tasted delicious in comparison. But even more delicious was the smell emanating from the kitchen. He could imagine Katara bent over the table, diligently working on breakfast. He had pictured this day for so long, waking up with Katara to brighten his day. And finally, he was there with her. A smile spread across his face as he thought of a day with Katara. He was hoping to have a picnic with her under the willow tree from yesterday. He would do his best to make some sea prune stew and his signature fluffy fruitcake. He Airbended himself out of bed, eager to start his first day back. He also wanted to tour around the facility, it was a beautiful area Toph had picked out. As he walked out of his room to the kitchen, his mind wandered to Katara teaching Waterbending to the others, the way she effortlessly twisted her body and how the water obeyed her every graceful movements, the way light glimmered off her deep ocean blue eyes and off her silky ebony hair.

Suki and Katara were both in the kitchen, making breakfast, as they did everyday. Sokka and Toph were both way too lazy to make anything themselves, which was ironic considering they were biggest eaters in the Gaang by far, besides Pipsqueak, of course. But today, they were joined by an enthusiastic Airbender.

Aang pushed the door opened and said, "Good morning! Wait, where's everybody else?"

"They're still in bed, like they always are," Katara said, without lifting her head up.

"We're the only ones up at this hours normally, Aang. Considering there's no big bad guy to beat, the rest of group has been taking it easy, besides teaching the kids, of course," Suki explained. Suki didn't mind that Katara and her were the only ones making breakfast; in fact she kind of enjoyed it. This was a rare opportunity to talk another girl about whatever was on her mind. She looked forward to it at the beginning of each day; it was nice to escape from the toil of the training center and just talk to Katara in privacy.

"Hmm… that doesn't seem right," said Aang, comically stroking his chin, "Do you guys need any help?"

This time Katara looked at the Avatar, "Why the sudden urge to help us?" she said in a menacing tone, her mind flashed back to the day Aang left her.

Aang saw the look of anguish in her eyes and replied in an innocent voice, "Well, it just doesn't seem fair that you have make breakfast every morning when we all know that Sokka and Toph eat the most." Aang was trying to shift attention away from him and was hoping to lighten the mood. But it didn't work.

Katara turned back to the table and scoffed at the Airbender. Even though Aang had a point, he had no right to talk about what was fair and what wasn't. Suki gave the Waterbender a questioning glance, trying to understand why she was acting so cold. She should be ecstatic that Aang had returned, but she seemed much worse.

Suki turned to look at Aang, who was standing with an awkward look on his face, "Actually you can help, could you finish steaming the rice and cooking the soup?" Suki continued before the Waterbender could object, "Katara, I'd like to talk to you, in private," the Kyoshi Warrior said in a forceful voice, slowly pushing her away from the miso soup.

Katara was about to protest, but she knew Suki would find other way to talk to her anyways, so they both left the kitchen, letting Aang finish breakfast.

The two girls walked outside, into the wide-open expanse of the courtyard. When they reached the maple tree Katara turned and stared at Suki impatiently, waiting to hear what she needed to talk about.

"Why are you treating Aang like this?" Suki asked.

Katara quickly responded with, "Like what?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. First of all, you should be bursting with joy that he's back. And he came in there willing to give us a hand and just denied him, why?"

Katara thought about what she going to tell Suki and eventually decided to let out all her emotions. She had spent last night trying to work through her feeling alone, and now she was hoping Suki could help make sense of her situation and give her advice.

"Oh gee, I don't know. Maybe it was the fact that he just up and left right after the end of war! Right when things were supposed to get better! Or maybe it was the fact that he took off on Appa without even saying goodbye! Even after risking our lives for him, he was too selfish to even give a simple 'See ya guys later, thanks for all your help.' No, he just ran away like a little coward! And then we don't hear from him for weeks and he just falls from the sky, attacks us all, _kisses me_ and expects everything to be all-better. Ugh! It's just so frustrating and confusing and don't what to think anymore and certainly don't know how to act around him!"

Suki looked around for a moment, worried that someone might investigate what the shouting was about, but thankfully they were far enough from the dorms to wake anyone. Suki turned back to Katara and waited patiently for her to calm down. The Waterbender had been throwing her hands in the air and stomping around the tree as she unloaded on Suki. When she was satisfied that Katara had settled down enough, Suki asked her a few questions, "So he kissed you?"

Katara narrowed her eyes at Suki, wondering why of all things would she ask her that. Katara nodded slowly and added, "He always seems to do that when I don't know how to feel." She remembered back to the quick kiss they shared at Ember Island. _That just seems to be Aang's fall back plan_, she thought, _whenever he doesn't know what to do or say, he just decides to kiss me, and that makes things so much worse_.

Suki looked at Katara and again waited patiently to let her thsink about it and then asked, "How did it feel?"

Katara snapped back to reality and stared with a white hot rage at her brother's girlfriend, "What the hell does that have to do with anything, Suki?"

Suki replied calmly, "Don't avoid the question, Katara."

"Why do I need to answer it? It doesn't even matter how it felt!" Katara shot back, her voice slowly growing louder with her anger.

"Oh it definitely matters, now answer the question," Suki said, staring into her blue eyes.

Katara took a moment to collect herself, there was no need to yell at Suki, she was just trying to give her the help she desperately needed. "It felt so good. When Aang left the only thing that kept me going was the beautiful kiss we had." She about to go in details about how his soft lips matched hers a puzzle piece and how time seemed to stand still around them and how the fog around them made the kiss even more magical, but she decided not to bore Suki with those extras. She continued, "I almost forgot about him taking off, but I can't! It was just so childish of him." And then her anger resurfaced and she was shouting again, "I can't believe he did that! Didn't he even think how much that would hurt me!"

Before Katara could get too out of hand, Suki walked up to her and buried the Waterbender's head into her shoulder, letting the dark skinned girl let out all the tears she had been holding back.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Aang watched as Katara and Suki left the kitchen. He turned to look at the steaming rice and boiling soup, sighed heavily. He Waterbended the soup around with a bored face, his mind elsewhere, lost in thought. Things with Katara already weren't going well. He still regretted leaving her behind and he knew she'd be upset, but he'd hope that she'd see the reason in all of it. He left because he cared so much about her. He sighed heavily, afraid that Katara would never forgive him for leaving. The Avatar quickly thought of something else, avoiding the possibility of never being with Katara.

His mind wandering to the events that unfolded last night. He knew ambushing the Gaang would be a risky move, but the past few weeks had been _so_ tedious for him: the constant Peace Meetings, no fun, and worst of all, no friends. He had missed them all so much and he was in dire need of some horsing around, and attacking them like that just seemed like the perfect way to accomplish that. Just as his mind was drifting off to all the good times the Gaang could have now, Sokka burst down the door and said, "What's for breakfast, I'm _starving_."

"Katara and Suki made steamed rice and miso soup. It smells delicious!" Aang said with a smile across his face.

Sokka yawned and said, "But where's the meat? How can you have breakfast without any meat?" And then Sokka looked at Aang's expression and added, "Oh right…vegetarian…sorry, Aang."

"No problem, Sokka. I know you're the meat and sarcasm guy," Aang replied with a small laugh. The Airbender handed the Water Tribe Warrior a bowl of miso soup and asked, "Where are all the others?"

Sokka scarfed down some soup and then answered with, "They're still sleeping. And after what you did yesterday, I'm surprised I'm not still in bed."

Aang avoided Sokka's eyes and said, "Oh right, I guess I should apologize to all of you."

"Eh, well to tell you the truth I think we kind of enjoyed, at least I did. It's been so long since anything remotely scary has happened to us. And after eight months with the Avatar, traveling around the world, meeting all sorts of bad guys, that little episode back there was refreshing. Sure teaching the kids is a lot of fun, but nothing quite compares to almost getting your butt whooped," Sokka said.

"_Almost?_ I kicked your guys pretty well," Aang said with a grin on his face.

"Hey! It's like you said, we had no idea who we were dealing with! I want a rematch, one-on-one, but no bending! That's just unfair," Sokka said, hoping to show Aang that he had gotten better with his sword.

"Sure, that sounds great!" Aang said with a beaming face, he was glad Sokka was willing to spar with him. It seemed like Water Tribe Warrior wasn't holding any grudges against the Airbender, and that pleased Aang. His mind shot back to Katara's icy comments from a few minutes ago; hopefully she could forgive him, somehow. And just then, Sokka asked, "Where are Katara and Suki, exactly? Normally they're the ones in here during breakfast, talking about girly stuff."

"Suki took Katara outside to have a _talk_," Aang answered, worried about what they were talking about that could take so long. _What if she can't forgive me? What will happen then?_ Aang thought. Living in the Fire Nation Capital without her was unbearable, but what if she didn't feel the same way anymore. Aang silently kicked himself for not thinking his arrival through all the way. _What if she already moved on? Why the hell did I have to kiss her! Every time I do that it ends up horribly! What is wrong with me?_

Sokka stopped slurping his soup to examine the angry face of the Avatar, "Uh… is everything alright, Aang. It looks like you're trying to Firebend with your eyes."

The Airbender snapped back to reality, "What? Oh, yeah, yeah, everything's fine, Sokka. Uh, I'm just really hungry is all." He sat down next to Sokka and served himself a little rice and a bowl of miso soup and quickly spooned some in his mouth. Sokka gave him a doubtful look, but Aang refused to look up from the bowl. Sokka decided to let it go, Aang had a rough night, too.

A few minutes later, Toph and Teo strolled in for breakfast. Sokka raised his eyebrow at the two of them, they had being going everywhere together, even during training, Teo would spend a _lot_ more time in the Earthbending arena than in any other. But honestly, Sokka was glad Toph was taking a liking to Teo; it seems like underneath that "healthy layer of earth," there was a girl after all. And even better, Teo liked Toph for who she was.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Toph and Teo had bonded over things that normal people couldn't understand. Their disabilities had brought them closer together. Typically, they would excuse themselves from dinner early to have walk around the training center. One evening, Toph decided to talk to Teo about their disability.

She told him that as a girl, everyone treated her as if she wasn't even human, like she was some lesser form of being. Her parents didn't tell anyone about her, it was as if they were ashamed they had even given birth to a disabled girl. Teo tried to reconcile her, "Toph, our disabilities are a part of us. We have no reason to ashamed of it, even if others are. We had no say in what happened to us and we should embrace it, our disabilities make us better at certain things, they make us unique. Just look at you! You're the strongest Earthbender the world has ever seen: you can sense things from hundred of yards away and you can even bend metal! Do you think you could done all that if you had been able to see?"

"Sure that stuff is cool, but don't you ever want to be, you know, normal?" Toph said, a little embarrassed.

"Hell no! Normal is boring! I mean look at our group of friends, are anyone of them normal? Of course not, and that's what makes us great. If it hadn't been for the flood that paralyzed me, I never would have become the inventor I am today. I spent years growing up, being frustrated that I was always stuck in a wheelchair while the other kids were running around outside enjoying the sunshine. But you know what? That time inside taught me something truly important, it taught me about who I am, an inventor. I spent that time cooped in my house building things, improving things, and thinking of great things that I could design. And it's the same way with you. If had been able to see, you never would've learned Earthbending from the badger-moles. You should thankful that you're blind, you've learned so much more than you ever could have imagine." Teo paused to let Toph absorb the idea.

Toph had never considered blindness to be a blessing, but the more she thought about, the more Teo seemed right. She remembered her time as the Blind Bandit, kicking butt in the underground Earthbending arena. Maybe she should be grateful for her blindness and her subsequent ability to "see" with her feet. A grin spread across her face as she realized that Teo was the only person who could have explained it so perfect to her. But she quickly wiped it away; she still wasn't sure how she felt about Teo. Did she like as a friend,_ more than a friend?_ She couldn't be certain; after all, this was the first time a boy wasn't completely intimidated by her. But she did enjoy Teo's company and shockingly wise conversations they had together.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

After letting Katara cry for a few minutes, Suki pushed the Waterbender's head from her shoulder and stared her straight in the eyes, "I don't see why you're so upset, Katara. Sure Aang left and that hurt and all, but he's back now. And like you said, the kiss felt good. So why not forgive him and start that life of happiness that you've been dreaming about," Suki said.

"It's not that simple. Seeing him again just brings up memories of him leaving, and what does it again? What if I do something wrong and what if he just takes off on Appa to run away?" Katara said, feeling the tears well up in her eyes, as she thought about what would happen if Aang would leave her again.

Suki tried quickly to talk some sense into her before she broke down again, "Well, that's just the way it has to be. Come on Katara, there can be no love without pain. Love is all about making sacrifices and opening yourself up to the other person, and if he hurts you, so be it. It's just a chance you have to be willing to take. And remember who we're talking about here, Aang only left because he afraid for your safety, he _really_ cares about you, Katara. And you'd be stupid not to even give him a opportunity to at least apologize."

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Aang turned around and said, "Good morning, you two! There's some steamed rice and miso soup for breakfast."

"Oh god, Aang, do you have to be so chirpy in the morning?" Toph mumbled, grabbing the bowl that Aang offered her.

"Give her a few minutes, she's still angry that you whipped her butt yesterday," Teo explained with a grin on his face.

"Hey! Aang appeared outta nowhere and he attacked me right when I was about to tell you guys who he was! That was such a cheap shot Aang, I want a rematch!" Toph demanded before she even started to eat.

"Well, actually Sokka asked first, so that'll have to wait." Aang said sheepishly.

"Now that I think about it, I'm going to need a new sword before we fight. And if I remember correctly, you have to help me," Sokka said with a devious smile on his face. Aang had no idea how hard it would be to find a metal better than the space sword.

Aang thought about it for a little and said with a smile, "First I need a lesson with Sifu Toph," giving her a slight bow, hoping to repair her broken pride.

Toph looked up from her bowl, "Why? You seem to be doing plenty well with your Earthbending. Which is shocking considering how long it took for you to move a pebble," she said with a mocking smile.

Aang chuckled and said, "Well yeah, Bumi helped me out a little, but I need you to teach me something that no else knows how to do."

"And what is that, Air Head?" Toph said with one eyebrow raised.

"Sensing. Especially underground. I'm pretty good with things on surface," Aang said, remembering his fight with Zuko and Bumi, "But I can't really feel things underneath, like the way you found Fire Nation's secret palace and those people in the mountain near Hama's village."

Toph thought about for a little bit and said in a mocking tone, "I'd be honored to teach the Avatar anything he desires." She smiled at the thought of getting back at Aang during their training. And she also liked the idea of teaching someone some advanced Earthbending. Sure Haru was good and all, but he was a slow learner to be honest. And even though it took a while for Aang to pick up Earthbending, he was clearly getting better quickly.

They heard elephant-like footstep approach the kitchen and then Pipsqueak, with the Duke still on his shoulders, walked into the room. "Hi-ya guys, I got some bad news for everyone," he said in his deep voice. They all looked up from their meal, "Me and the Duke gotta head home, we got a messenger hawk yesterday telling us that a lot of people have been going through our forest and the kids there are getting jumpy. I really hate to leave right when Aang came back, but I really think we should get going soon." The Duke said from above, "We're really sorry Aang, but the kids really need us. After Jet, we've been kind of leaderless and things have been tough, I hope you can understand."

"Sure I understand, you should be there to help protect your forest. I'm just glad I ran into you guys here! I'm going to miss you guys," Aang said.

"Don't worry, Aang, I'm sure we'll meet again," Pipsqueak said, pulling Aang in for a hug. He picked the Avatar up and walked over to Sokka and scooped him up from his seat, "And thank you Sokka, for helping me learn the way of the swordsman."

"Yeah, yeah, sure, no problem Pipsqueak, just please don't squeeze us to death," Sokka said in a weak voice.

The giant let out a boisterous belly laugh. Walked to Toph with Aang and Sokka still in his hands, "And thank you Toph, for building this awesome place and letting us stay here with you guys."

"Oh yeah, don't mention it, big guy," she managed to choke out.

"Okay we're going to go pack up, thank again for all your troubles," the Duke said, as Pipsqueak let every down to the ground.

And with that the four of them discussed their weeks apart. They talked about the training that was going on and Toph decided to teach Aang sensing later that afternoon.

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**I wasn't quite sure how to finish this chapter, so I'm sorry if you're disappointed by the abrupt ending. Keep reviewing me, please!**


	7. Fight

**As always, i thank you guys for your reviews, they mean so much to me! This chapter's focused mainly on Katara and Aang, but it's not exactly a "Kataang moment," but hopefully you can enjoy it nonetheless.**

**Disclaimer: nope, still don't own a bit of AtLA**

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Fight

After Toph, Teo, and Sokka left, Aang finished his breakfast and waited patiently for Katara to come back and eat her own breakfast. He needed to apologize for his foolish actions as quickly as possible. He figured it would take some time for Katara to finally forgive him and the earlier, the better. But the Waterbender never showed. After an hour or so of waiting, he strolled around the training center, still not quite familiar with it yet. He saw kids waking up and heading to the mess hall for their breakfast. After a few minutes of meandering, he stumbled across a massive courtyard, which unknown to him at the time, which was the Waterbending arena.

The 10-acre plot of land was the same size as the rest of arenas, this opening featured streams and lakes and beautiful greenery. Ugly black scars were scattered throughout the foliage and Aang instantly recognized that this was the Waterbending arena, and the dark spots marked the places where Waterbenders were learning how to bend the water within plants. He remembering the other skill Katara had learned from their trip, Bloodbending. Aang shivered as the memory of losing control of his body to Hama's bending came back to mind.

He paced around the open expanse, forgetting about that nightmare and instead focused on the break taking sight around him. He came up to some bushes and heard the voice of his angel. The Airbender was just about to burst through the shrubbery when he heard a dozen female voices usher the words, "Yes, Sifu Katara." _Of course,_ Aang thought_, Katara's been busy training the other benders, she's not avoiding me. She just has bigger things to do at the moment. _He scanned the arena for a nearby tree to climb up and get a better vantage point. His eye's settled on a large, sturdy redwood tree, he quietly Airbended himself atop one the highest branches to see the Master at work.

At the moment, she was inspecting the forms of her pupils as they attempted the water-whip. A grin spread across his face as he remember her soft, warm skin pressing against his to fix his Waterbending stance all those mouths ago when he was first learning. He nearly fell off the tree because he was lost in his memories. He quickly righted himself, but the branch shook with his movement. He saw Katara pause in the middle of correcting one of her trainees and she looked up at the branch with narrow eyes. Aang sat perfectly still on the branch, barely breathing, until Katara was satisfied that it was just the wind or a bird that shook the branch.

A few minutes passed until Aang finally got what he wanted. Katara stepped into the lake behind her and, slowly and methodically pushed and pulled the water until she had a massive surge under her control and then she unleashed it. The wave flowed for a good hundred yards before dissipating. But more impressive than her strength, was her awe-inspiring beauty. Aang just couldn't get enough of that gorgeous body that Katara had, the way her fluid motions matched the water's, her look of determination as she attempted an advance move, the way water drops would spray onto her skin and slowly slide along her body.

He snapped out of his trance as Katara whipped around abruptly and said, "Now it's your turn, try to form the biggest wave you can, without losing control."

The trainees looked doubtfully at each other, even though some were the same age as their Master, no one could come close the wave Katara just formed. They tentatively entered the water and began to imitate Katara's motions. After a few minutes of encouragement, Katara decided to give them a rest. "Why don't we take a 10 minute break, and then we can try again." The pupils sighed in relief, who know creating a simple wave could take so much energy?

As the pupils began to sluggishly leave the water, Aang took this opportunity to talk to Katara. He jumped down from his perch and landed softly on the ground. As he approached Katara, who had her back to the Airbender, he said, "Katara, I wanted to talk to you about—"

Before Aang could finish his sentence, he had to sidestep an icicle heading for his chest. He turned back to look at Katara, who still had her back to him, "What the hell, Katara! I'm trying to apol—" This time, he got a month full of lake water and Katara turned around to look him dead in the eye. He saw the look of pain, anger, and even fear in her eyes and face. She took a step towards him and the fight began.

The trainees stopped and turned around when they heard the sound of shouting and splashing water. They were just able to catch the first attack from Katara. She lifted her arms up slowly in front of her, summoning the water around her, forming a large sphere behind her. Aang's eyes grow wide and gulped, readying himself for the oncoming attack. She lashed one arm after another at the Airbender and the water followed in streams aimed at the Avatar. Aang nimbly avoided the first few, but the attacks were increasing in frequency, so he whipped his arms out in front of him to block the water-whips. He moved his arms around, sending the water flying out in all directions. He was rusty, he hadn't Waterbended in quite some time, and he hadn't learned any new moves in the Fire Nation. He had done a good job blocking the frontal attacks, but he was too preoccupied with the water-whips to realize the wave that Katara was forming behind the Airbender. One moment Aang was slashing the water-whips, the next, the wave swallowed him up and forced him farther into the lake. The Airbender was about to regain his stance when Katara sent another wave crashing into his side. This time he was deep underwater; he looked upwards at the sun playing across the surface of the water, and he did a twist, he shot up, and formed a tornado of water underneath him, as he had done with his first encounter against Zuko. He peered down to scan the water for Katara, but little did he know that she had a created her own waterspout and was towering above the Avatar. In one fluid, sweeping motion, she sent the twister of water at the Airbender. He looked up just in time to see the water fill his view and within a few seconds, he was back on the ground, spitting up water, and holding back a grunt of pain. Aang held his side, which was already starting to bruise up, and looked around frantically for Katara. He saw her running at him at full speed; she came close enough so that Aang could make out her features. She wore the same face she as when he had left, the face of heartbreak coupled with pain and rage. Aang was about to jump up into a defensive position, but he realized it wouldn't be worth; Katara needed to let out her anger and frustration and this would be the quickest, albeit most painful, way. He remained sitting on the ground, waiting for her next attack. When she was only a few steps away, Katara jumped and did a three-sixty with her arms outstretched, forcing the water in a circle around her. When she hit the ground she unleashed it on the Avatar, who sat there accepting the blow, and he was sent flying into the tree he had been sitting on only a few moments ago. Aang's back slammed into the trunk and when the surge subsides, he fell again to ground, trying to hide his pain. He slowly pushed himself back into sitting position and Katara glared at him, "Get up and fight!" she demanded.

"I won't fight you, Katara," Aang replied calmly, trying to keep the pain from seeping into his voice.

"Why? Because it wouldn't be_ fair_?" she said, mocking his words from earlier that day. "Or maybe I'm just too helpless to defend myself?" she yelled, recalling Aang's seemingly selfless reasons for leaving.

Aang decided not to reply, understanding that Katara would find some way to turn it against him. She glared at him, waiting for an answer, and when one didn't come, she attacked again.

She swirled another large sphere of water behind and then thrust both hand forward; the water split around her and converged where Aang was sitting. The two massive streams of water slammed into his sides and once again, he was crushed against the trunk and this time Katara froze him there. "Come on, Aang! Fight me! You obviously don't care if I get hurt or not!" she yelled at the boy. The Avatar just looked down back at the furious girl, waiting for her next barrage, but it never came.

She turned around and yelled out in frustration and stomped right past the group of the Waterbenders and screamed, "Class dismissed!" as she headed back to the dorms. The girls looked back and forth from their teacher to the Avatar, still frozen ten feet in the air against the trunk. One of the older girls took a step towards the boy, who was slowly losing consciousness and unfrozen him gradually, making sure to catch him before he hit the ground. With the unconscious boy in her arms, she walked carefully the healer's hut.

Katara turned around and saw one of her pupils with Aang in her arms, and she instantly broke down. _Oh my god!_ she thought, _what have I done? I can't believe I let my anger get a hold of me like that. And look what I did to Aang! How is he ever going to forgive me for _that_. Sure Aang hurt me and all and he did deserve some of that, but I did really have fight him like that? He wasn't even defending himself and just attacked him. What is wrong with me!_ Katara ran quickly to the Kyoshi Warrior training arena, as tears started to form; she desperately needed to find Suki and talk this through.

Katara ran through the dorms dividing hers and Suki's arena, and she followed the sound of the Kyoshi Warrior's voice.

Suki heard someone stumbling around behind her and was about to attack when she saw a very distraught Katara. _Oh boy,_ she thought, _only one thing in the world can make her _this_ upset_. Without looking at her pupils, she dismissed them and they looked at each other with quizzical glances, but they were grateful for the sudden interruption. Suki had been kicking these kids into shapes recently and they were willing to take any break they could.

Suki walked over to Katara who stopped once Suki saw her. "Come on, let's back to my room," Suki said in a sisterly voice. Katara slowly nodded in agreement, and Suki wrapped her arm around the disheartened Waterbender and they made they're way back to the dorms. We they had finally reached the door, Katara burst through it and collapsed on the bed, letting the sobs take hold of her. Suki let out an inaudible sigh, _Why do things have to be so complicated with this one?_ she thought. Suki joined her on the bed, pulled Katara into sitting position, put her head on the Kyoshi Warrior's shoulder, and then Suki softly stroked the Waterbender's back, waiting for her to calm down. After a few minutes, Katara sucked in a breath, and in broken voice said, "Suki, I did something horrible." Katara paused for a couple seconds to recount the events that had just happened. "I-I was teaching my students some Waterbending and th-then I gave them a break. I was starting to leave when I he-heard his voice and I don't know what happened. All the pain and hatred bubbled up again and without even thinking it I shot an icicle right at him. And the next thing I know, I'm screaming at him telling him to fight me so that I could let all my pain and anger and frustration on him. I really, _really_ wanted to hurt him, Suki, but I still don't know why! Why would I do something like that to Aang?" Katara broke down into tears and Suki tried to comfort her, but she couldn't think of anything to say. Suki never thought Katara would go that far, she figured the Waterbender would give Aang the cold shoulder, but to attack him like that…Suki had only heard of one time Katara had done something remotely close to that, Jet. Suki debated about bringing up this fact mainly because she was unsure about how Katara would react; clearly the Waterbender was strung out. The Kyoshi Warrior decided let Katara to finish up sobbing and then she asked, "I know this will be hard answer, but is this in anyway related to what happened between you and Jet?" Suki allowed Katara sometime to let the idea sink in some.

Katara was about to yell at Suki for even suggesting such an idiotic idea, but she quickly shut up mouth and thought about what the Kyoshi Warrior had just said: _Maybe Suki has a point. I thought Jet was a decent guy and then he goes and betrays me, and the next time I see him in Ba Sing Se and just attacked him without even thinking about it. The same thing just happened with me and Aang, maybe Suki is right. But why did fight Aang with _so_ much hatred? _She slowly began to understand that she had treated Aang worse than Jet because she loved the Airbender much more than Jet, and that made his betrayal so much harder to deal with. She had been so deep in love with Aang, that when he left, she had lost herself completely. And now that he was back, she wasn't sure if she should forgive him immediately and start the perfect life she had be dreaming of, or never forgive so that she wouldn't have to go through all that pain and rejection again.

Katara looked up at Suki, and without answering her, she left the room making her way the infirmary. But halfway there, she decided not to visit Aang; he would need time to recover from the physical and emotional injuries that Katara had just inflicted. The Waterbender sighed with resignation and she headed back to her own room, and went to bed early that night, neglecting her growling stomach.

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**Don't hate me for this chapter, Katara's and Aang's relationship is going to be very complicated. If you want a FanFic where everything works out perfectly in the beginning, then i'm sorry to say but you'll have to look elsewhere; i've read too many stories where Katara and Aang are immediately happy together, and I apologize to all you Kataang Fans. But if you keep reading, i promise, after all they go through, you'll love Kataang even more.**

**Please review!**


	8. Recovery

**This might be the last update for a while, i'm starting camp this weekend, but i'll do my best to keep writing in whatever spare time i have. **

**I tried to incorporate as many character's as i could in this one, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: still not an owner of AtLA**

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Recovery

Aang had sent the last week and a half in the infirmary because of the fight between him and Katara. She had given him no mercy and, as a result, he was covered with cuts all across his body and bruising along his sides, he also had two cracked ribs and a broken arm. Of course, Aang had seen much worse, but this time Katara wasn't healing him. Aang didn't know if Katara was naturally gifted or if they're time together had made their energies more connected, but she always did a better job. Even though the healer assigned to the Avatar was warm-hearted and caring to her patient, she could never compare to Katara. Aang missed Katara's soft touch, as she would gently caress his wounds with her glowing hands. But what was worse than the physical pain was the emotional turmoil inside of him. When he was conscious long enough to give it thought, he'd come to the realization that Katara no longer wanted any part of him, the fight had solidified this point. The fact that Katara never visited him once during his time was the final straw. Aang spent his recovery trying to let Katara go, understanding that he had hurt her beyond repair; she could never forgive him for leaving and the fight was her communicating that they could never work out. Aang slowly let the idea wash over his mind, no more Katara; no more wonderful future together, no more seeing her Waterbend, no more happily ever after. Aang had tried many times to contact his previous lives to discuss this new obstacle, but his bodily damage prevented him from doing so. Every time he was about to talk to Roku or Yangchen, pain would shoot across body, centering on the middle of back, where the ugly scar interrupt his sky blue tattoos. He desperately needed the wisdom of his past lives, they were the only reliable source of advice for him, unlike everybody else, they fully understood his responsibility as the Avatar and the heartache that came with it, at least Roku understood that part. He thought back to the guidance that Yangchen had offered him all those weeks ago, _Duty over love_.

Aang thought to himself, _Maybe this is exactly what I needed. With Katara out of my mind, I can focus on the world as a whole, and tune my body and spirit into everyone's needs. Maybe this will make me a better Avatar_ _and the world could definitely use the Avatar at a time like now. They could use someone to help show them a more peaceful way of life. Most of the people living right now have never experienced a time like this before, and who better to lead them than me? I'm the Avatar _and _I lived in a peaceful world. I'll do all I can to rebuild the world as it was. People will have friends in every nation, they'll be able to ride the giant Elephant Koi Fish and sled on penguins in the South Pole and hopefully Bumi will let them slide down Omashu's delivery system._ A wide grin spread across Aang's face as he remembered the good times he had had before the Fire Nation had attacked and obliterated his people. But as these thoughts filled his head, he gradually realized that the world needed something different, a new type of peace. He wasn't exactly sure how, but the world would have to progress, not revert to a former era. He also realized that he himself would have to change to accommodate this change and he was willing to sacrifice his own desires in the name of helping the world. But his stomach dropped at the thought of depraving himself of what he wanted, again. And he was so sick and tired of sacrificing his own desires to help save the world. He was only twelve years old and he had spent the last eight months training his butt off to face the cruelest and most powerful man alive. Air Nomads his age would be still be mastering the second group of ten tiers of Airbending. They'd have another four years in their Air Temple until being rotated another one to learn more Airbending. But of course, lucky Aang had to be the Avatar and assume the massive responsibilities inherent with a person of his bending capabilities. Aang grown to understand that he had a duty to world, but just this once, he wanted to get something that he had always wanted. If he could just get this one thing, then he would be more than happy to sacrifice for the rest of his life. More than anything in the world, he wanted Katara. But as always, the spirits seemed to mock him, Katara was no longer his anymore. Right when he was ready to accept Katara into his hectic life as the Avatar, she rejected him. He knew his life as a Peacekeeping Avatar would be stressful and Katara always had a way of helping him relax when he needed it. He felt so stupid not letting her come with him when he left for the Fire Nation. She could make all those boring Peace Meeting worth it. Coming home to Katara would make Aang the happiness man in the world, even if he was stuck discussing the minor details of a minor operation in a minor village. Aang laid in bed, recovering and aching from his cuts, bruises, and broken bones, but mostly because he had lost the thing that he had cherished most.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Sokka, Teo, and Toph made daily visits to the Airbender. When they had first heard from Suki at dinner, they all thought it was a joke. Katara had a habit of verbally explosive, but no one could believe that she actually attacked someone, _especially_ Aang. But Suki insisted that it was true and the next morning, when Aang didn't show up for breakfast, the three of them headed to the infirmary, unsure of what to expect. Aang hadn't regained consciousness yet, and he looked horrible with the cuts and bruise still fresh on his skin, his chest was even caved in at a sickening angle. Sokka was about to complain that the healer should do something about it when he realized that none of them had any real experience with an injured patient. Katara had taught them the basics on the dummy from the Northern Water Tribe that they had thoughtfully brought with them, but nothing could have prepared them for treating all the blood loss and the staring that the odd angles that Aang's limbs were assorted. Sokka decided to be mature and thank the healers for being brave for the Avatar, assuring them that Aang would be glad for their help.

Though Aang looked awful, the three of them knew he had survived much worse, but that didn't stop them from imagining what could have happened. They had been through so many dangerous situations that it was a miracle that they had survived this long. Seeing Aang like this remind them that even though he was one the most powerful Avatar's ever, he is still a twelve-year-old boy.

Sokka remained by Aang side for a long time. Seeing Aang like this got Sokka thinking about a life where he didn't met Aang. He would still be stuck at the Southern Water Tribe, the oldest male of his small village. He would have grown up thinking he was best Water Tribe Warrior ever. He would have never gotten a chance to travel the world on Appa, he never would have understood how little he actually knew, but most of all, he never would have met Suki. Sokka shuddered slightly at the thought of never meeting Suki; she was his whole world. He would have remained the meat and sarcasm guy, but because of Aang, he was so much more; he was master planner and tactician, a competent swordsman, a courageous warrior, and a leading expert on boomerang technique. Sokka silently thanked the Airbending for nobly surrendering to Zuko all those days ago and setting his destiny in motion.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Though Toph couldn't see Aang, she knew something was definitely off; his steady, airy heartbeat was now erratic, speeding up and slowing down for no apparent reason. There were times when his heartbeat fade and Toph would panic, yelling someone to do something, anything to save the little Air Head. She thought back to the first time she had felt that light heartbeat and those airy footsteps of his. She tried to think of her life if Aang hadn't demanded that she teach him Earthbending. She would still probably confined in her parent's estate, still sneaking out to participate in the underground Earthbending tournaments. Her parent's still wouldn't know about her secret Earthbending skills so she would be to go, but it wouldn't feel same. Sure fighting was great and all, but fighting with the Avatar was so much more…fulfilling. Before Aang she had been content fighting for money and fame, but traveling around the world opened her eyes to the struggle that everyone else had to endure. Aang had opened her eyes to the world around her, figuratively speaking. She thought she had it bad because she wasn't allowed outside her estate, but seeing some the Earth Nation villagers, she was sure they would be glad to be holed up in grand estate like hers. Although she didn't show it, her heart broke for all the people she had come in contact with. They all looked miserable, fighting for their very survival. She felt so stupid now as she looked back, she should have been grateful that her parent's had cared so much about her. She should have been thankful to grow up with servants and food always ready for her, she had been so selfish and she didn't even realize it. Toph thought back to breakfast they had shared only a few hours, she was supposed to teach him sensing and now he was lying on the ground, wounded. She was about to punch him, to show the unconscious boy her affection, but she stopped herself inches away from his shoulder. She desperately needed to break that habit, especially because of Teo. _Teo_. Yet another thing Aang had given her. Although she wasn't completely sure of her feeling towards the paralyzed boy, she knew that he was truly one-of-a-kind. Toph made a promise to herself to talk to the Air Head once he woke up, and tell him all the things she was grateful for. Holding up the tough-girl exterior was tiring sometimes, and every now and then, it was nice to have a heartfelt conversation with one the Gaang member.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Teo looked down at the young Airbender sprawled across the ground with his cuts still bleeding. Even though he knew Aang was going to be fine, tears started to form in his eyes; he couldn't stand looking at Aang like this. This was the last of all the Airbenders, the people who had given him a new life. He had taken refuge in their Temples along with the rest of his people; they had given him a means of transportation and feeling of completeness. Gliding was more than just moving around in the air; it was he way of connecting with the world, especially with Aang. He had so much to be thankful for; the Air Nomads had almost become his own ancestry. He spent hours upon hours exploring every nook and cranny that he could reach, trying to understand the Nomad way of life. He and his dad even learned some of their language thanks to some scrolls they had found in the monks rooms'. He slowly began to understand their culture. They would separate children from their parents to begin the detachment process at an early age. After sixteen years of learning Airbending at one Temple, they would move to another so they couldn't become too attached to any one person or Temple, hence the Air _Nomads_. Every decade afterwards they would change Temples again and some of the years in between would be spent living in the other Nations, grasping their culture. The Air Nomads were dedicated to finding enlightenment and salvation by understanding one's place in the universe and knowing's one responsibilities. Being a monk was all about sacrificing one's needs for the greater good, the road was typically a challenging one. This is why Air Nomads typically produced the strongest Avatar in the cycle, and that was why Fire Lord Sozin had chosen to wipe them out permanently. Teo's nostril started to flare in anger as he imagined all the peaceful Airbenders being mercilessly consumed in flames. He needed a distraction, and his eyes settled Aang's glider that one of the healer's had just brought in. Teo bent down and picked it up, it felt a little heavy and the spring mechanism was starting to wear down. He decided to take it back to his room to fix it up, plus he needed to get out of the infirmary, it brought back too many painful memories of his own injuries. During his time in the Air Temple, he had found piece of orange, silky material that was incredibly lightweight but was so fine that it could capture the air. Teo immediately knew that this was the secret to the Nomads graceful flight, he had been meaning to upgrade his own glider with this rediscovered fabric, but he knew Aang would need it and cherish more than he ever could. He spent the next week fashioning the orange material to Aang's glider, hoping that the Airbender would enjoy the gift.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara had spent the last week and half on an emotional roller coaster. One moment she'd be fine, teaching Waterbending moves to her pupils, the next she would start sobbing uncontrollably as she thought of what she had done to Aang. This happened so frequently that the students had simply left when Katara had an episode like this. And truthfully, they were even more intimidated by Katara after what she did to the Avatar. Rumors started spreading throughout the center that Aang had done something horrible and Katara had finally gotten her revenge that she had be plotting. Of course this gossip had some truth to it, and that made it unbearable for Katara. She was so lost while Aang was in the infirmary, she wasn't sure if she should stay by his side until he was better, like she did when Azula struck him down with lightning, or keep her distance and allow Aang to recover on his own. Her heart pleaded with her to go to the Avatar and apologize to him and heal him as she had always done, but her mind told her it wasn't a good idea. Aang would need time to forgive her, if he ever could. Plus, seeing Aang hurt like that would be unbearable, especially because she had did it to him. Moreover, she didn't how to apologize for what she did. She couldn't just walk up to him and said, "Oh sorry about that Aang. I was just really mad but you totally had it coming." She wouldn't be able to face him and she definitely wouldn't be able to keep it together long enough to apologize. She hated herself even more when she realized that she hadn't given Aang an opportunity to apologize before she had attacked him. Everything was just moving so fast all around her: the war was over, the glorious kiss, Aang leaving and then finally coming back, and the horrible fight that could end it all. Katara was so mad that she destroyed her chance with Aang, she and the Airbender were over even before they were together. She had spent her days in the Water Tribe dreaming of man who would make her feel safe, loved, and respected, and Aang was that guy. Aunt Wu had predicted that she would marry a powerful bender and Katara had stupidly been looking around for a formidable bender, when Aang, the _Avatar_ was right in front of her. _How could I be so stupid_, she thought, _Aang is everything I want, and I had to go and ruin it! Why did I have to be so angry with him, he only left to protect me, because he cares about me, or cared. I've screwed up everything by attacking him. All I had to do was wait a little bit longer and let Aang apologize for something that wasn't even his fault. How could I be so angry him? _Her heart sank as she realized that Aang may not be able to forgive her at all, she had gone way out of line and she couldn't expect Aang to be all right with that.

Katara needed to accept the fact that Aang and her may not work out. She desperately wanted to apologize, but what use would it be? Even if she could somehow find the right words to express her regret, there was no guarantee that Aang could forgive. After all, she was holding a grudge against him just because he left for a few weeks without saying goodbye. She was so frustrated with herself; Aang and her could have been together right now if she had just forgiven him. But she was too proud and selfish to do that at the time and now she finally realized her mistake. Katara made a vow to love Aang no matter what happened between them. No longer would she hold a petty grudge against him for something of his control, she needed him so much that she was willing to get hurt if necessary. Suki's advice rang loudly in her head; _There can be no love without pain_. She smiled as she understood Suki's wise words, but her heart sank when she realized that Aang might not feel the same way about her anymore. But before she could become too upset, she decided to wait until Aang was better and then ask him for forgiveness. If he did, she would be overjoyed; they would finally, _finally_, be together. All the heartache would be worth it if she could just kiss Aang one more time. And he didn't forgive her, Katara would do her best to understand his decision, but she knew that it would hurt deeply if Aang would reject her.

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**Hopefully you guys liked the personal perspective of each character. (Note to Guests: creating an account literally takes less than five minutes.)**

**Please review! I read each and every one of the reviews i get and i love hearing what you have to say!**


	9. Devastation

**Sorry about the wait for this guys, but i'm trying to write as much as i can during camp, please be understanding. And thanks for all the reviews**

**Disclaimer: sadly, i have no ownership of AtLA**

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Devastation

She wasn't sure who was suffering more. Sure Aang was stuck in the hospital, but at least people visited him. Katara had spent the last week and half in almost complete isolation. Sokka, Toph, and Teo were all avoiding her because of what she did to Aang, and she understood that. She had done something totally wrong and she deserved the cold shoulder from them, but what she couldn't stand was not talking with Suki. She had always been Katara's safe place since Aang left. Suki had endure all the tears Katara had spilled and given her priceless advice, and even Katara didn't follow the advice, she was always grateful that Suki would put up her. But now, even the Kyoshi Warrior wasn't on her side, she couldn't forgive her for what she did to Aang. Katara knew there was a good possibility that she might lose Aang, which broke her heart, but losing everyone else along with him was going to be impossible. She tried desperately to fill the gap of her brother and especially Suki but no one would let her in, none of the teachers or pupils. They had all heard of her fight with the Avatar and most of them had become extremely intimidated by her. Even some of her own students were afraid to ask questions, fearing that Katara would explode on them. To make matters worse, the isolation was really messing with Katara head; paranoia was setting in. She'd spend her nights twitching at every creak of the floorboard or the rustle of leaves. She would eat breakfasts alone, constantly checking over her shoulder, making sure no one was stalking her. Walking to the arena, she would zigzag around trees and stream to deter any followers. During breaks she would check her student every few second to eavesdrop on the possible gossip about their insane teacher.

Out of the entire training center, only one person would accept her, Haru. He had chosen to stay, even when the Duke and Pipsqueak left, claiming that he could do more help here than anywhere else. He hadn't socialized much with Gaang, he knew they were tight-knit group and respected that. They had been through a lot together that he couldn't fully appreciate that yet, and he decided to let them have their own fun. However, he did make friends with some of the Earthbenders and Swordsmen. At night, the group would leave the training center for the rolling hills of the Lower Ring and have their own makeshift tournaments. One-on-one, single elimination, first place wins dinner for a week, which the losers had to pay for. Haru had grown to love these night outings; it was he chance to cut loose and finally act like a teenager. Toph had put a lot of responsibility on him that he wasn't quite ready for, he still had much Earthbending to learn from the blind girl, but she desperately another Master, and so Haru filled in. Sensing was still a mystery to him, and metal wouldn't yield to his bending, he was constantly frustrated with himself for being unable to master these skills, but the tournaments reminded him that he was still a decent bender. He had won 3 of the 5 tournaments they had held so far, placing second in the other two.

On his way back from one the championships, he heard a barely audience sob come from a room across the corridor. He quietly sneak around until he located the source of the sound, he was about to knock on the door when he realized it was Katara's room. His fist froze in the air, a few inches from the wooden door; he had heard the horrifying tale of Katara's wrath against Aang. He was about to turn around and head back to his room when he remembered all that Katara had done for him: saving his father and himself from that nightmarish hell-hole of a Fire Nation prison. He would regret it if he turned his back on his guardian angel. He slowly gathered up his courage and knocked softly on the door, and then opened the door without waiting for an answer.

Katara's back was to the intruder and she quickly wiped away the tears running down her face. She turned around and saw Haru standing at the doorway. _That's odd_, she thought, _I almost forgot Haru was even here_. She did her best to fake smile, "Hey, Haru! I haven't seen in a while, have you been hiding from me?" she finished in slightly flirtatious tone, hoping to catch him off guard so he wouldn't ask about her sobs.

"Wha-? Oh, no I just figured you guys enjoyed your own company. Anyways I came because I thought I heard you crying, is everything alright, Katara?" Haru said, concerned for Katara. He knew that people had been keeping their distance from Katara, and that didn't seem completely fair. Haru needed to hear her side of the story first, before he could decide. Though he had only know Katara for a short amount time, she never seemed like the girl to explode like that one someone, especially the Avatar. Aang must have done something to make Katara act that way, and Haru was determined to find out what had happened to the self-denying lovers.

"What? I wasn't crying, I was…I was uh…" She racked her mind for a plausible excuse but she couldn't think of anything.

"I know what I heard, Katara. You want to talk about it?" Haru said.

Katara thought about it for a moment, she didn't really know Haru that well, but maybe that was good thing. After all, he was the only person who was actually willing to talk to her. Katara took a deep breath and recounted the story to the Earthbender. She told him how much it hurt when Aang just left her, she told him how she ached everyday he was gone, she told him how she got revenge for all those tears that she had shed while Aang was off in the Fire Nation. About half through the story, Haru joined her on the bed, staring into those ocean blue eyes that held so much pain, grief, and sorrow. He let her finish as tears started to well up in her eyes as she remembered, once again, what she did to the Airbender. Haru gently took Katara's hands into his own and said in an understanding voice, "You can't blame yourself for what happened, Katara. Aang absolutely deserved what you did to him." Of course this wasn't exactly, but Haru wanted to say something that would comfort the beautiful Waterbender, and blaming Aang was the quickest and easiest thing to do. She nodded slowly as she her eyes slowly wandered around and settled on her handed laying on Haru's. She quickly looked up at his face and cleared her throat and said rapidly, "It's getting late, Haru. And clearly I could use some sleep."

"Oh right, right," Haru said quickly, "I'm exhausted, too." And with that Haru left the room in a hurry, closing the door softly behind and headed to his own room for some much needed shut eye.

The next morning Haru walked into the breakfast room that the Gaang always used. He was hoping to find Katara again to talk to her. Last night had been a busy one. What with the championship and Katara's confession, Haru had a tough time falling asleep. Memories of Katara flashed before his eyes. He thought about how brave she had been to risk her own live to save some Earthbenders that had given up on themselves. Haru had her to thank for bringing his father back home, without her, Tyro would be depressed on that Fire Nation rig.

Haru was happy to find Katara sitting alone, slowly spooning food into her mouth. He sat down next to her and said, "Hey, Katara. I hope you're doing better today."

Katara looked quickly up from her food, she had been daydreaming, as she always did, about the fight. She stared at Haru blankly for a second and then quickly swallowed her food, "Oh yeah, thanks for talking with me by the way. I've been so lonely recently I almost forgot how nice it is to actually talk to someone." She was genuinely happy that Haru had endured through her sob story, although she still was a little uneasy about the handholding. What shocked her most was the fact that didn't react when he grabbed for her hand, it's almost as if she _wanted_ it to happened.

"I'm sure you woulda done the same for me. Listen; do you…" he paused to compose himself, smiling anxiously, "Would you like to have lunch with me? I know a really nice spot just beyond the training center," he said, nervously speeding through the last part as his heart pounded away.

Katara stared at him with questioning eyes and her mind flashed back to her first encounter with the Earthbender. She remembered how she felt a connection to him with he told that the Fire Nation captured his father. She remembered as his risked exposure by saving that old man from the falling mine. She remembered how he helped her free the Earthbenders. Before she could fully think about it she said, "I'd love to!"

"Great!" Haru, caught slightly off guard by her enthusiasm. He rushed outside to wake his students up to start the class so that he would have time to prepare for the picnic.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

After a long one and half weeks, Aang was finally cleared to leave the infirmary. Sokka, Toph, and Teo made sure to be there when Aang took his first steps out of that infirmary. Aang had some work to do quickly before he had to leave. He had received a messenger hawk from Zuko about a week into his recovery, it read:

_Avatar Aang,_

_I know you must be having a great time being back with our friends, but unfortunately the world doesn't go on vacation. Iroh and the others have heard word about a possible uprising and they would like you to be in attendance at the meetings. And this time, I think it would be a good idea for you to actually bring our friends to the Capital. There's a lot for them do here plus, Mai and I really miss them, too. Just because I'm Fire Lord doesn't mean I don't want to see them anymore, and to be perfectly honest, it's kind of lonely without you guys. Please come back, Aang, world needs you._

_Fire Lord Zuko_

Aang had debated if he should tell the Gaang about it. He even thought about bringing this time, but as he reread the letter, he realized it wouldn't be a good idea. This time, Zuko actually knew that a rebellion was stirring and now their safety was a valid reason once again. Aang had become depressed; he didn't seem to fit anywhere anymore. In the Fire Nation he was stuck in boring meetings without his friends and even in Ba Sing Se, he had spent more than a week here, but it wasn't the same. Having the threat of world domination really brought the Gaang together, it made them rely heavily on one another, it made them love each other. But now that Ozai was finished, there was no singular goal to strive for. Of course the training center kept them all busy, but it wasn't as fulfilling as training to fight the Fire Nation. He slowly wandered around the center, until his rumbling stomach sent him to the kitchen.

Toph slammed her fist on the table and yelled out, "Twinkletoes!" before Aang had even walked through the door. Sokka quickly swallowed his food and tackled Aang to the ground as walked into the kitchen. "Oh my god, Aang! You're finally alive!" Sokka yelled out, on top of Aang. The Airbender laughed a little bit and choked out, "I won't be for long if you keep crushing me."

Sokka quickly got back up to his feet and brushed himself off, and in a dignified manner, he said, "I apologize for letting my emotion get the best of me," and he calmly returned the table, and proceeded to stuff food into his mouth.

Suki let out a small chuckle; she loved Sokka's dualism. The way he could be serious at times and funny at others. She especially loved when he quickly flip-flopped between the two, when he wasn't sure which one was appropriate. Sokka looked up and smiled at her. He was so lucky to have girl like Suki, so brave, so brilliant, and so beautiful.

Aang Airbended himself back onto his feet and winced as Toph approached him, bracing himself for a rock hard punch. But to his surprise, Toph spread his arms and embraced him and then pushed him away, "That took you long enough. Looks like Sugar Queen is a better bender than the Avatar" Toph said, assuming her tough-girl persona again. Teo smiled at Toph quip and rolled forward to Aang. "I hope you don't mind, but while you were recovery, I decided to fix up your glider," Teo said as he held out the beautiful, dark cedar wood. Aang grinned widely as he inspected the new modifications to his trusty glider. He jaw hang open as he twirled it around and snapped at the silky, orange wings. He quickly stroked the fabric, grateful to finally have a real piece of home with him. He fingered traced the body the gliders and he froze when he felt an inscription, "No way! You can write in Air Nomad tongue!" Teo grinned, pleased that Aang was impressed with him, "Yea, traveling through the Temples teaches you a thing or two."

"Well, what does it say, Twinkletoes?" Toph blurted out.

"It says, '_Only an Airbender's Spirit is lighter than air_,'" Aang read, smiling as he recollected that Teo also had an Airbender's Spirit. "Thanks, Teo. It means a lot that would put so much thought into my glider." He gave the paralyzed boy a noble bow and the boy returned the gesture. When Aang stood back up, Suki drew him into a hug, "I'm so glad you're alright," she said. "Yea, me, too," Aang replied with a soft chuckle. Suki slowly released him and asked, "Well, what are you doing to do now?" knowing full well what the Avatar was thinking. Although his stomach his growling, he needed to talk to one person before he could even think about eating. Aang said, "Uh… I think I'll go test my new glider," quickly turning to head out into the open air. "Great idea, I'll join you," Teo said, eager to test out his new modifications on his wheelchair and see Aang's expression to the improved glider. But before he could leave, Suki placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, "I think Aang wants some alone time." Teo looked at the Kyoshi Warrior with a confused face, but the force in her voice told him not to question her. Aang glanced back at Suki and gave her a grateful smile.

Aang took a few quick steps into the courtyard and leaped high into the air and unfolded his glider. He did a few loops to get the feel of Airbending back. A week and half of doing nothing but lying on your back can really make you rusty with your bending. Aang was going to flip on top of his majestic glider to do some wind surfing, but he figured that wouldn't be the best idea at the moment. He scanned the ground as he spiraled around the training center, searching for the beautiful Waterbender. First he needed to apologize and then let her know that he did deserve the beating for what he had done to her. He wish he could bend time to stop himself from being an idiot and leaving without Katara, but even the Avatar couldn't bend time, unfortunately. After scanned the entire complex, he widened his search, getting slightly worried that she wasn't out teaching her students this afternoon. He neared the edge of the woods, when he heard the angel laugh softly. He had to strain his ears to make sure that it wasn't just the sound of the wind rushing by ears. When he was certain that it was in fact Katara, he landed silently behind some bushes. He slowly gathered his courage to face Katara, truthfully he _was_ a little scared after their last encounter, but Aang was hoping that Katara had released all her anger at all. He took a deep breath in, stepped through the undergrowth, and his heart froze. There she was, a beautiful as ever, with the wind playing in her silky black hair, and her luscious, soft lips… locked with someone else's.

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**Hold on you Kataangs fan, these next few chapters are going to be really rough, buuuut the one's afterwards are going to be right up your alley. Aang and Katara are going to be lead away from each other, but their reunion is going to make the wait absolutely worth it, so please be patient. I was debating whether i should wait until i wrote all the chapters to their reunion so you guys wouldn't freak out, but i have no idea how long that could take, so i'm just going to update one at a time, please understand!**

**and as always please review!**


	10. Anguish

**Geez! Now you guys are the one's to judge Katara quickly, here's her side of the story, I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: i no own AtlA**

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Anguish

Katara dismissed her students early that afternoon; she still needed time to think about what Haru had asked her this morning and especially her response. She slowly headed back to her room, pausing every now and then to examine her reflection in the Waterbending arena's many streams and lakes. She stared at the dark circles creeping onto her youthful face, she had had so many restless nights in the past month that she had lost track. Time just seem to flow all around her, she never gave anything much thought before she did it. She would just let things happen to her, her depression and isolation were really messing with her. She remembered what had happened last night: holding hands with Haru was very strange, his rough, dry hands against her delicate, soft ones. She missed the soothing sensation of a certain Airbender's feathery touch. She shivered slightly at the thought of Haru's burly hands, but still, she had just let him grab her hands without a second thought. And then at breakfast, her mouth spoke words that her brain didn't even think about, it was like someone else was controlling her body. She was confused now, more than ever. At first she thought it was just going to be lunch with someone finally willing to listen to her, be then she remembered how nervously he had asked her, and how elated he was when she accepted. Maybe Haru meant this picnic as some sort of date, in which case she had badly misinterpreted the invitation. All she wanted was someone to talk with and express her feelings, but Haru seemed to want more and she wasn't sure if she was ready for that. After all, Aang still might, somehow, be able to forgive her for what she did to him. She had to hold on to that shred hope, that Aang could let her back into his life. And she also needed to apologize to the Avatar before anything else, so she decided to call things off with Haru. She dreaded the thought of crushing Haru's heart, but she was caught off guard by his sudden interest in her. He had been at the academy almost since the beginning and they had barely talked to each other. This was mostly Katara fault, because she chose to avoid him. Haru brought back memories that she didn't like to think about, especially considering the way she felt about Aang. Before even making it back to her room she headed to the Earthbending arena to talk to Haru.

Toph and Haru were dueling as demonstration to their student. Toph focused on attack, naturally, as Haru swiftly blocked the oncoming rocks. Katara crept up from behind the audience of pupils, careful not to disrupt the class. Toph slowed down her attacks to signal the end of the match, and Haru was grateful for it. He was sweating profusely and was relieved to finally let down his guard. Even when Toph was fighting for educational purposes she still attacked with ferocity. Haru took a few deep breaths to regain his strength and look at the crowd of the students who were applauding the duel. His eyes wandered to the back of the audience and his gaze settled on Katara. He blushed deeply and looked away quickly. Some of the student caught his expression and followed his glance; they gasped slightly when they saw Katara standing behind them. A few took a cautious step away from her until the whole crowd noticed her presence. Toph turned around to find out what all the commotion was about and when she saw Katara, she said in a scathing tone, "Come on, we've got better things to do than to stare at the Sugar Queen." She still wasn't ready to forgive Katara for what she did to the Airbender, especially when Aang purposefully let down his guard. The students quickly filed into a line behind Sifu Toph; glad to get away from the psychotic Waterbender.

Haru stayed behind a little to talk quickly with Katara, "Hey, Katara! Sorry about that… are we still on for lunch?" Though she had come to stop the picnic, seeing everyone, even Toph, run away from her like that was just too much. She couldn't stand the isolation anymore! She'd be alone for more than a week and she had started to slip: her mind was always in different places at once, she could never concentrate on one thing for very long, and images of the fight constantly flashed before her eyes, her nights were consumed with replays of fight Aang, she meals were always lonely, her students had come to fear her, anytime she would picture Aang's mangled body she would break down and sob for hours. Katara thought that Haru could be her chance to escape the madness that had become her life. She just needed someone, _anyone_, in her life right now and Haru was the only willing to do so. And in her desperation for attention she said, "Of course, Haru." Haru smiled a broad grin and ran to catch up with the other Earthbenders, waving goodbye to the Waterbender. Katara sighed softly, unsure of what to think or do next. She just so confused, even though she still hoped that Aang could forgive her, every passing moment made it seem less and less plausible. Ever so slowly, she gave into the idea of never having Aang. She let a single tear slide down her face as she reluctantly let go of her Airbender.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

When Haru finally caught up to Toph and her pupils, he quickly asked for permission to leave. Toph reluctantly agree, not knowing of his plans with Katara. The Earthbender rushed into town to pick up some ingredients for the lunch, a blanket, and a picnic basket. His face was glowing as he raced from shop to shop. Something had come over him during breakfast a few hours ago, he hadn't planned to ask the beautiful Waterbender out, it was just a spur of the moment invitation. He looked into those sad ocean blue eyes and took pity on her, but it was more than that. When he saw Katara during his duel with Toph, his heart started to flutter and blood rushed to his face. There was no denying it; he definitely felt something for this girl. There was just something so familiar about Katara, he found her irresistible all of sudden and he couldn't understand why, but he didn't care. This was the first time he had felt this strongly about a girl and he loved the feeling. Even though he didn't know much about the dark skinned girl, he looked forward to getting to know her. He could barely hold in his excitement as he ran from the marketplace to the rolling hills of the Lower Ring to set up the picnic.

After he was certain everything was perfect, he rushed back to the training complex to find Katara and take her to the beautiful clearing. They chatted nervously until they came upon the top of the hill with a majestic dogwood tree swaying over the blanket and basket. Haru held his hand out forward, signaling Katara to take a seat on the woven cotton blanket.

She said, "Wow, Haru! You were right; this _is _a beautiful spot."

Haru replied sheepishly, "Yea, it's pretty nice. I stumbled upon it when me and guys went out one time. It just looked so peaceful from far away, and it looks even more beautiful with you here." Katara blushed deeply at the comment, but quickly turned to avoid his face. Something was off here; she could feel her emotions stir as her first memories of Haru came to mind. He was the first boy she had a crush on and now the feelings were coming back, but something was nagging her. She pushed the uneasy feeling out of her head and remembered his graceful movements during his Earthbending, his noble efforts to save the wretched man who turned him in. He was such a courageous, well-built man, the blood rushed back to her face when Haru held her hands again. Haru stared deeply into the perfect, deep ocean blue eyes of the stunning Waterbender and he slowly leaned forward, shutting his eyes to savor the moment. Katara sat motionless, waiting, until his lips made the full journey to hers. She felt the touch of his lips and immediately her eyes flew open, she quickly pushed him away.

She knew what has happening, but she couldn't believe it when it happened. His rough, dry lips felt disgusting compared to the luscious, soft, perfect ones of her Airbender. Images of Aang throughout their journey together were forced into her mind. Her eyes began tear up as she realized what had happened. She had become hopeless; by letting Haru kiss her, she was essentially giving up on Aang. She couldn't believe what had just happened! How could Haru do something like this and, more importantly, how could she let it happen! She hadn't talked to him in weeks and all of sudden she lets him kiss her? She ran away with tears dripping down her face, ashamed of what had happened.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Aang tried to leave before the image of his love kissing another person could be burned into his eyes, but it was just so painful he couldn't forget. The thought of Katara moving on was hurtful, but seeing it take place right in front him was tortuous. Aang soared back into air, willing the glider to speed as fast as it could to whisk him away from this nightmare. _I should have expected this_, Aang thought, _I was stupid enough to leave her and now she's found someone else. This is all my fault, if I had just being willing to take her with me, we could be together right now. But no! I had to overthink every little detail and blow things way out of proportion. Well, at least I don't have to apologize to her; I definitely can't face her now. The only thing left to do now is to return to the Fire Nation. God I hate it there, it's so lonely. _Tears dropped from face into the wind as he made his way back to his room to pack. All he wanted to do was leave the training center, and the people in it. He hurriedly jammed his clothes into his bag and headed to the stable where Appa was staying. When Aang swung open the doors, the Sky Bison let out a huge growl, ecstatic to see his master after so many days without him. Appa run up Aang, tackled him to the ground and licked his whole body, but Aang wasn't in the mood for a reunion. He bended himself from underneath Appa's feet and walked to his side. He stomped the ground and sent the saddle flying onto Appa back where Aang bended a small air ball to cushion the landed. Momo came flying from above when he heard the bison growl and touched down softly on Aang's shoulder, licking his cheek and chirping with joy. Aang ignored the flying lemur and jumped high into the air and landed on Appa's head. Aang let out a soft, "Yip, yip," in a resigned voice, but Appa refused to obey.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Toph felt the ground rumble as the giant bison let out a groan that vibrated through earth. She dropped the roll headed for her mouth and whispered softly, "Not again." Sokka, Suki, and Teo, who were enjoying their lunch, chatting about the things they could do now that Aang had recovered, gave Toph a puzzled look. She quietly let the table and broke out into a dash when she reached the door. Teo yelled after her, "Hey! Wait up, Toph!" and he quickly pushed himself in pursuit of the blind girl. Suki gave Sokka an odd look and they both jumped up and followed the other couple. As they made their way outside toward the stable, Sokka's, Suki's, and Teo's stomach dropped as they realized what was happening. They broke out into a full sprint to the barn while Teo pressed some keys on his armrest to give himself a quick boost. They all arrived to see Aang wrestling with Appa to make him fly, but the sky bison simply refused, he wouldn't leave without the rest of the family on board.

Toph screamed at the Avatar, "What's the big idea Air Head? Where do you think you're going?"

Aang responded, "I-I have to go."

"Where? Everything you need is here!" Sokka yelled at the Airbender. His best friend had finally gotten better and now he just decides to leave, something was definitely up.

"No, I need to go back to the Fire Nation Capital. There's some uprising or something that I have to deal with," Aang said, trying to be strong.

"Well how 'bout you hop off Appa and then we discuss what we'll do, together," Suki chimed in, desperate to keep Aang from leaving. No one understood why he was in such a hurry to leave, only a few hours ago he seemed happy enough at breakfast. Suki assumed things didn't work out well between Aang and Katara, but she didn't know why Aang had to leave so suddenly, _again_.

"I-I can't take you guys with me," Aang said hanging his head in defeat. This is why he didn't want to say goodbye, too many people with hurt feelings that he had to face. It would be much simpler and a lot less painful if Appa had just obeyed.

"Why not, Aang? We were willing to risk our lives to save the world once, and we're willing to do it again," Teo argued.

"Not all of you are," Aang said, this time tears started to form on his eyes as the image of Katara kissing another person forced it's way into his mind. It was just too much handle, to think that Katara had already fallen in love with someone else. Although he shouldn't be surprised, while Katara had been the only girl for him, she always seemed to have an eye on another boy. He was stupid for thinking that he could leave Katara and expecting her to still be single by the time he had returned. He should have taken a clue from the fight; Katara wanted nothing to do with him, because she was interested in someone else. He flashed back to rescue attempt of the Earthbenders held captive on the Fire Nation rig. How could he be so naïve? The only reason Katara had suggested that risky idea was because of Haru, because she had a crush on the tall Earthbender. He cursed himself for not seeing it earlier, he never had a chance with the beautiful Waterbender, he was just some other guy to her, nothing special. The only thing that could remotely set him apart from other guys was the fact that he was the Avatar, but that still didn't make a difference. He thought back to the other boys they had encountered and one stood out in particular, Jet. How could he have missed the obvious flirting between him and Katara? He remembered the way Katara first looked at the tall, handsome, Freedom Fighter, the look of love radiated from both of them. He had been the goofy, tiny boy in the background, while Jet and Katara were both chatting it up. He never even stood a chance against men like Jet and Haru, and he finally realized that. It was time to let Katara go, she was a grown women, and he was still a young, childish boy. Perhaps now he could focus on Avatar duties without the heartache of missing Katara. Now he could finally sacrifice himself for the good of world, without a second thought. Now he was free to become the peaceful Avatar the world so urgently needed. That kiss closed the door on Katara, but opened the possibilities of others, namely the Avatar State. He could now finish his training with Guru Pathik and help end rebellions across the world.

Appa let out a terrifying growl that snapped Aang back to reality. Sokka breathed out softly, knowing that Aang had a habit of being stubborn, and asked Aang innocently, "Do you at least want to say goodbye to Kata—" Aang's eyes shoot a look of fury at Sokka who quickly closed his mouth, realizing he had struck a raw nerve. _Things never seem to work out for the two of them_, Sokka thought, _I wonder whose fault it is this time_.

Toph yelled at Aang, "Why, Air Head? What's wrong with you? Why can't you just bring us along with you? We have always helped you, even when you've done so stupid things, so why can't we come?"

Aang looked down, from atop Appa's head, at the blind girl, and said softly, "This is something I have to do alone." Sokka, Suki, Toph, and Teo all let out a simultaneous sigh as they all realized that Aang had made up his mind, and that was that. Aang leaned down and rubbed Appa's head affectionately, regretting that he hadn't given the proper care to the sky bison, and whispered in his ear, "Come on, boy. I _really_ need to leave now, the world needs me." Appa let out a soft growl of defeat, feeling the torment of his master, walked forward and licked the rest of Gaang. The four-ton bison walked out into the open air, and with one swift motion of his tail, the remainder of the Air Nomads sailed into the air. Aang look back down at his friends, his heart full of sorrow as he embarked on another lonely, self-sacrificing journey that could lead him anywhere.

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**Hopefully this'll help you Kataang lovers, but please hang on for the next few chapter. Although Aang and Katara won't be together, everything will work out!**

**Please review! just write me a few simple words telling me how i did**


	11. Grief

**Thanks for all of your reviews! This chapter has some Maiko (I figured you guys could use a happy couple at this point). Enjoy! And I apologize in advance for all the mistakes in this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any part of AtlA**

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Grief

When Aang finally reached the Fire Nation Palace, he was greeted with a huge hug from Zuko. When the Fire Lord released the Airbender he said, "God, Aang, I'm so glad you're back. Even Fire Lord gets lonely sometimes, although maybe not anymore." The Firebender had a large grin across face and Aang had to ask, "What's going on, Zuko; you look like you've gone crazy." Zuko chuckled and responded with, "I _am_ crazy; crazy about Mai. Aang, I asked her marry me a few days after you left and she said yes! The wedding is in a few weeks. I was hoping the rest of the group would come with you, but I guess that didn't happen." Aang looked at sudden sad face of his friend and said, "Oh yeah, about that. Things didn't go too well while I was there." Aang didn't know he was going to survive anymore. In the past, it had just been nagging thought that Katara could have moved on, but now, it was real. Zuko saw the disheartened Avatar and decided not to push him, and responded kindly with, "That's alright, I'm sure we'll still have tons of fun preparing for the party. Meet me in the Palace Courtyard at dusk, we'll have to practice for the ceremony." Aang brightened up at the thought of training, the past week was spent in the hospital and the possibility of bending again made him feel a lot better.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

His return to the Fire Nation was a continuation of his dull routine. Every morning, bright and early, Aang would join the Council of the Four Nations in the Fire Nation Palace to discuss tedious details about this new era peace. It's funny, even though Aang had brought peace to world; he had been in a constant state of turmoil. There was no more happiness for him; Ba Sing Se held too many painful memories as he imagined the relationship of Katara and Haru, the Fire Nation held too much responsibility and was always lonely. Although Aang and Zuko spent hours together talking of their new lives, practicing Fire- and Lightningbending, and planning the Royal Wedding, Aang was alone during day. In the meetings, the representative would try to be sympathetic for the young Avatar, but that didn't help him. Seeing Chief Hakoda everyday was become a real hassle; he was a constant reminder of his failed relationship with his daughter. His mind drifted off to happy couples he had meet throughout their journey. One in particular stood out: the pregnant woman crossing the Serpent's Pass. The Tahn had been so loving towards his wife, Ying and managed to look so peaceful together, even though their future looked so bleak. He wanted that for himself. Someone to love, even in the worst of times. He thought to his circle of friends: Suki and Sokka seemed to click perfectly together; even Toph and Teo appeared to be hitting it off. Zuko's and Mai's happy relationship forced Aang into depression when he realized he was the only one without someone of his own. Even emotionless Mai had fallen in love with Zuko.

Even though Zuko and Mai had grown up side-by-side, he still was nervous around her and she always managed to surprise him. The thing he loved most about Mai was her soft side that she refused to show to anyone besides him. She would pretend to be a detached woman with little interest in anything going around her, but come nighttime, the happy couple would spend hours gazing at the stars, sharing their intimate feelings. Zuko was shocked by Mai's passion for certain things, especially her sharp daggers, and the poetic way she expressed it. He also loved the way men would try to flirt with her and the way she would get rid of them. She would giggle politely and flash a smile that she rarely wore, and lift up her sleeves, as if to expose more skin. The men would greedily at her, impatient to catch a glimpse of her. Then their eyes would see a glitter underneath her sleeve, and when she pulled back more, the color drained from their faces as they saw the collection of assorted darts, daggers and arrows all sharpened to a lethal point. Some would apologize and walk quickly away, to get away from the assassin and others would simply turn and run for their lives, Zuko especially loved that reaction. Seeing Mai subtly reject men like that always put him in a good mood, even when he had to endure a long day of Peace meetings. Mai had been place of comfortable and familiarity during his transition into his role as the Fire Lord; he never knew how time consuming it would be. His father seemed to just stay cooped up on his throne in the War Room, but Zuko knew he had to do much than his father ever did. Although Peace meeting took up the bulk of his time, he also had to make public appearances all across the Fire Nation. The only person he could depend on to be there for him was Mai. Zuko reminisced in the time when Appa would fly the Gaang anywhere they needed to go. As Fire Lord, he was to take the Royal Convoy anywhere he went, and he loathed it completely. The thought of other people caring him in the sedan chair was repulsive; he remembered how Azula would ride it with an air of arrogance around her. His banishment had made him appreciate everyone's rights in this world, and he hated the fact that people were carrying while he was able to walk anywhere he wanted. Although seeing Mai gracefully disembark the sedan always mesmerized the Fire Lord, no matter how many times he saw it. He was so happy to finally be with his childhood sweetheart that he could barely wait to propose.

He had debated for weeks where to pop the question: Ember Island, a romantic dinner, their stargazing spot, but nowhere seemed to be right, until he remembered one of fondest memories. Azula had been manipulative from a very young age, but it actually did help at times. Zuko was always shy around Mai, even as a child, but Azula never seemed to care to about his insecurities. She would persuade their mother to make the Prince play with the three of them, the Princess, Mai, and Ty Lee. There was one particular time that stuck with him through the years of what had happened. Azula had made up a stupid game involving an apple and sharpshooting that she appeared to enjoy, but Zuko was never too fond of. One of these times, he rushed towards Mai, to save her from Azula's fireshot, only to knock her into the fountain. Although he was extremely embarrassed about it in front of Azula, he had secretly cherished this memory. He thought back to the beautiful courtyard, lush green grass surrounding the majestic water fountain, and the tall trees swaying in the wind. This would be the perfect place to propose to Mai.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

The Royal Wedding was a night to remember. Guests swarmed into the Palace to enjoy a feast of delicacies from across the world. Zuko gathered chefs from all the other nations, including Aang, to help make this wedding a memorable one. People would taste foods they could never imagine. Even though the dinner was fantastic, it also served another purpose. When the dinner was coming to a close, Aang rose and tapped his shiny knife on the encrusted glass and gave his toast:

"I've spent most of lives traveling the world, and I must say, I have never seen two people more right each other than Zuko and Mai. Their love has had to endure more hardships and delays than most of us could bear. And although they might be young, I assure you that Zuko and Mai have what it takes to lead a loving life of marriage for the rest of their lives."

Aang scanned the crowd as he was speaking and slowly sat back down, while the guest applauded his heartfelt sentiment. Few people knew the Fire Lord as well as the Avatar did, and these words coming from Aang meant a lot to Zuko.

After a few more festivities, the crowd followed the Fire Lord and Avatar outside for a special presentation. Zuko carefully removed his ceremonial outfit and stood in his sleeveless undershirt while Aang remained in his Air Nomad grab. They stood across from each other in a wide-open space and demonstrated what they had been practicing for weeks. They rose up one foot and stepped apart from each other simultaneously in abrupt motions. They punched and kicked at the same, sending flames in all directions and slowly circle back to one another, ending with their fist extending out towards the other. The guests politely applauded the demonstration, although they weren't sure why the Fire Lord and Avatar were dancing in such an odd fashion. Aang smiled at Zuko and nodded, signaling the Firebender that it was time for the grand finale. They mirrored each other's moves, back flipping the edge of the circle and landed lightly on their feet. They breathed out slowly to relax for a second and then shot their fists skyward. The crowd gasped at beautiful display of Firebending taking place in front of them. They had never seen such astonishing colors of fire before, purples mixing with greens and blues. The flame swirled high above the two benders so that everyone could see the awe-inspiring presentation, but it ended quickly. Aang and Zuko dropped their arms to their sides, panting and sweating heavily. They had mastered the Dancing Dragon a while back, but transforming the colors of fire took months of effort and constant practice. However it was worth it when the crowd rushed the two masters and lifted them on their shoulders.

For once, Aang was actually having fun and enjoying himself, he had almost forgotten what happiness felt like. Images of that betraying kiss still haunted his nightmares, but worse than that was his imagination. He could vividly picture the great times that Katara and Haru would have together. He could envision romantic dinners, walks on the hills of the Lower Ring, and friendly bending matches, all ending with a passionate kiss between the Water- and Earthbender. These dreams tormented him for weeks on end. It consumed him more than his fight with Ozai. We would spend nights trying to sleep peacefully, but every time Katara and Haru wormed their way into his thoughts, and he would wake, depressed that his one true love had betrayed him.

He tried to rationalize with himself, to help get over the pain of being losing Katara. _What was so great about Katara anyways_, he would think to himself, _all she did was nag us all the time and never let us have any fun at all. And there are plenty of other girls better than her. She is literally the first girl I saw in a hundred years, why should I be so hung up on her? Gyasto always warned me against becoming too infatuated with one person, to not notice the rest. There are plenty of other pretty girls that I've met along the way that I've turned down because I thought I had chance with Katara. Meng had had a thing for me, and On Ji was as beautiful as Katara and he had a whole group of fans at Kyoshi Island. Why the hell do I need her? I'm the Avatar! I can have just about any girl I want!_

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Suki founded Katara in room shortly after Aang left. She could hear the sobs from almost half down the corridor. She paused outside the Waterbender's door, _I haven't talked to her in while_, Suki thought, _and even though she might be mad at me, she deserves company_. Suki took a deep breath in, she regretted ignoring Katara for so long. She was becoming a sister to her and she felt bad for not talking, but what she did to Aang unfair. She sighed as she realized what Aang just did to Katara wasn't fair either, _these two have some serious communication issues_, she thought to herself. She knocked on the door and her Katara stifle her sobs for moment.

Katara wiped her tears from her face, she wondered her it could be. She smile slightly at the thought of Aang coming to see her, although she couldn't face him right now, not after what had just done. She tried to compose herself to say, "Go away, I don't want to talk right now!" Unfortunately, the intruder opened the door anyways, and to her astonishment, Suki stood in front of door, with a worried look on her face. Something came over the Waterbender and she up to embrace her best friend. She managed to choke out, "Oh thank God it's you, Suki! I'm so lost and I need your help so badly right now. I majorly screwed up; please just tell me what to do! I'm so sick and tired of doing the wrong thing!"

Suki smiled slightly, she actually missed given advice to Katara. She had always wanted to big sister and that's exactly what she was the confused Waterbender. Although she was confused as to what Katara was talking about; she had done nothing wrong, Aang did. It took Suki a solid ten minutes before Katara could actually form words so that she could tell Suki what she had done. Suki was hoping it could help explain Aang's sudden departure.

Katara's nose was running and she was sniffling while she told Suki what had happened in the past week and today: "Wh-when Aang came back, I didn't know to feel. I-I mean I _was_ happy and relieved to see him again, I thought he'd never come back. But something just came over when he approached during my teaching. I was just so angry with him for leaving like that! It was so selfish of him! Didn't he realize the hell I went through while he just skipped off to the Fire Nation? And then he comes back and expects everything to be fine, but it's not!" She took a moment to get her anger under control; she didn't think talking about Aang at loud would be this painful. "I…I guess I let all that hurt and rage take hold and I just lashed out at him, without realizing what I was doing. And then afterwards, I could barely live with myself, and you guys didn't make it any better, but I do get it; I did something terrible to Aang and I suppose I did deserve the cold shoulder from you. But… I've done something much worse than I could ever imagine and you have to promise never to tell Aang, _ever_! If you did… he could never forgive me." Suki gave the distressed Waterbender a cautious look, she had no idea what she talking about. "Umm… okay I guess. I promise not to tell Aang."

"No matter what happens?"

"Yes yes yes, now just tell me already. I'm starting to think you killed someone."

"I might as well have, Aang would probably think better of me thing." Katara took a few moments to tell Suki what happened between her and Haru, and she was exactly sure how to put it in words, so she just started talking, "Well while you guys were ignoring me, the rest of the world seemed to be doing the same. No one would ever talk to me or even look at me. And finally, yesterday, someone did talk to me… Haru came to room last night."

Suki did not like where this where going, but she let Katara finished before she could jump to conclusion. "It was really nice just talking to somebody for once. And then this morning he kinda asked me out on date, but it didn't even realize it. I thought it was just lunch between friends, which I would have really enjoyed. But anyways, while we were having a pinic, he…he kinda leaned in and… Haru kissed me, okay! Right on the lips! I didn't know what was happening and I don't know why I let him do that! I don't even like him like that. Suki please me, I don't want Aang to find out. The kiss meant nothing I swear, but I know if Aang were to hear about this he'd be devastated."

Suki put the puzzle together quickly; Aang had obviously seen Katara and Haru and had left because of it. She just didn't know how, or if, she should let Katara know right now. She was miserable as is, and the pile on the fact that Aang left because of her would probably spend Katara spiraling into depression, again. The Kyoshi Warrior decided to break it to her while they made breakfast together, just like they used to. Suki spent the rest of the afternoon trying to cheer her up, with little success.

As dusk turned into night, Suki left Katara alone in her room. She was worried about the Waterbender; if she was this upset about the possibility of Aang finding out, how would she react when she realized that Aang had left because of her?

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**Hopefully, you could follow the crazy chronology in this chapter (the wedding took place a few weeks after Aang's arrival in the Fire Nation Capital, but Katara's story happens right after Aang left). **

**Please take a few seconds to review me, it means so much!**


	12. Planning

**Thanks for your reviews! This chapter focuses on Aang's Avatar duties.**

**Disclaimer: i own no part of AtlA**

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Planning

"Hmm… Yes, that does seem like the best course of action. Considering the sad state of the Avatar, perhaps she could make him feel better. Although it is a stretch, it seems like it is our only choice."

"Then it's settled, the girl from Kyoshi will join the Avatar. She is a worthy fighter from the tales I have heard, and if we are lucky, they could help save the Air Nomads from extinction. It's a pity that things didn't work did not out with your daughter, but certain things must be done to ensure the safety of the Avatar Spirit. Perhaps they will bond during their difficulties. With any luck they will be more than friends. If there is no Airbender come next cycle, Avatars will cease to exist and peace along with it."

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

"Only a week long honeymoon, this Fire Lord job is much too stressful," Zuko said with a sarcastic smile on his face.

"Oh come on Zuko, being the Fire Lord is way more than just a job," said the monk mirroring the smile.

"I suppose you're right, especially considering you're the Avatar and all," Zuko said, pausing the hallway that lead to the Peace Meeting Room. Aang stopped a few paces ahead and turned around to look at Zuko with a questioning look. The Fire Lord looked at his best friend and asked a question that had been troubling him for a long time. "How do you do it, Aang?"

"What do you mean, Zuko?" Aang asked, turning his head sideways.

"How can sacrifice so much, all the time? You've literally had one week off this entire time. And before that you had to train for months to beat a man three times your age on the day he was most powerful. And during your training you had to run away from me and a bunch of other assassins. How did you keep it together through all of that, how did you manage with the stress and frustration with being the Avatar at such a young age? And now, how can go to those meetings and talk about peace when you're the only Airbender left in the world? Doesn't it bother you discussing the reparations of the war and still knowing that your people don't even exist anymore?" Zuko took a deep breath to refill his lungs and to stop himself.

He looked at the monk and realized he had pushed too far, Aang was staring at floor, trying not to remember his past. The guilt still got to him sometimes. If he had been more selfless back then, he would have accepted his duties and he could have saved his whole nation. He'd beaten himself for this thought hundreds of times, and it just never seemed to go away. Aang sighed and answered his friend, "I'm not going to lie, isn't not easy and it's definitely not fun. But when you're like one of us, Avatar or Fire Lord, you have a duty to the people and we have to do things that no one else can or would do. We have to do these things in order to help them, not just ourselves. But the trick to sacrificing everything, all chances of happiness, is finding that one person that makes it all worth it." Aang smiled sadly at the thought of Katara. He quickly pushed the image of her out of his head, he needed to think clearly for the next few hours; apparently this Peace Meeting was going to directed at him.

Zuko smiled broadly as he thought of Mai, in her stunning wedding dress. The red and orange of the flame-embroidered dress that went so beautiful with her up-done, shining black hair and the pearls flowing around her neck. Zuko's eyes glistened as he answered Aang, "I think I can do that. Thanks, Aang." The Fire Lord cleared his throat, getting his head ready for the mind-numbing task of the meeting and said, "Alright, I think it's about time we got in there. They'll be wondering why the little kids are so late for their very important meeting."

"Ah Fire Lord Zuko and Avatar Aang, it's good to see you side-by-side again. We were getting worried that you ditched us," Iroh said with a large grin across his face. Zuko returned the smile and said, "It's good to see you, too, Uncle. Although I wish it didn't have to be here." Iroh let out a soft chuckle and agreed with him, "Yes, this isn't the best place for a reunion, but it'll have to do. I'm sure you had a wonderful time with Fire Lady Mai, but now there are some very important things we must discuss and there isn't much time for delay." Aang looked around at some of the faces, they looked impatient, ready to get this meeting underway. Zuko followed Iroh to the Fire Nation side of the room while Aang walked solemnly to empty corner reserved for the Airbenders.

King Bumi rose and, in his boyish voice, said, "Well don't want to stay in here any longer than I have to, so let's get on with it. While you were on vacation with you friends, Aang, we got some troubling news from the Earth Kingdom." Bumi's eyes fell to the ground as he remembered what had happened. King Kuei picked up where the elderly King left off, "It appears as if the… Dai Li have returned to Ba Sing Se. And they've managed to rescue Long Feng from his prison, too." The King allowed some time for this idea to sink in.

Aang flashed back to his encounters with the Dai Li. They were a ruthless, willing to do anything they were told without a second thought. They are also quite good Earthbenders, and those rock-hands were an ingenious idea. And if Long Feng was the head of that organization once again, things didn't bode well for the Earth Kingdom Capital.

King Bumi spoke up again, "We've discussed this matters with others here and we've decided it was best if King Kuei and I returned to the Earth Kingdom, where we are desperately needed. But I would be fool if I didn't ask for the Avatar's help in this matter." Bumi snorted as he continued, "We all know how useful you can be in a pinch." Aang smiled at his old friend, he was confident that with Bumi's eccentric tactics they could take down the Dai Li, hopefully for good. Aang stood up to say what he thought, "Even though the Dai Li is a dangerous organization, I'm sure that won't be much of a problem, so long as I have Bumi by my side." Aang smiled at the thought of spending some more time with Bumi, they hadn't talked much recently which was a big let down for the Avatar. Bumi, along with Appa, was the only piece of his former life he had life. Aang knew Bumi had already come up with some crackpot idea of how to flush out the Dai Li, and somehow it would all work out.

Iroh stood up and filled them in on the details, "General How, who is the acting King of Ba Sing Se at moment, has sent many messenger hawks here explaining his situation. As you well know, before Azula uh… before she uh… completely lost her marbles," Iroh let out a belly laugh hoping to diffuse some of the tension. When Aang politely cracked a small smile, the Dragon of the West continued, "she dismissed many of her loyal servants, including the Dai Li agents. The Dai Li is very ineffective without some sort of leader, so after being banished from the Fire Nation, they returned to Ba Sing Se to free their former boss, Long Feng. They completed mission only a few days ago, but with Long Feng once again being the leader of Dai Li, it won't be long until they do something drastic to regain control. But what's worse was their rescue plan, it was thorough and well-develop, impossible without some mastermind behind. The Dai Li extracted their former leader with little notice. They had a double ready for Long Feng the moment he escaped; we're lucky someone was able to identify the decoy. It could be possible that Long Feng formulated his own escape, but more likely is someone else gave the Dai Li orders. If this is true, Long Feng could be the least of our worries. The reason we didn't come to you in Ba Sing Se is because we're hoping Long Feng won't realize we're on to him. At the moment, the Dai Li is more of an underground association, both literally and figuratively. I'm sure many war lords and arms dealers have joined their ranks, making them all the more dangerous. However, we don't have much information on the organization at this point and we were all hoping you could help us with that, Aang. We would like you to return to Ba Sing Se," Iroh trailed off for a moment, seeing the pain in Aang's eyes.

He wasn't ready to face them again, he wasn't sure if he ever would be. At least this time he had got to say goodbye…to most of them. His mind was once again drifting back to Katara, but he needed to pay attention to this briefing.

Iroh waited patiently as the young boy tuned back in, "To head the operation, with King Bumi and another capable warrior, against the Dai Li and Long Feng. King Kuei will return the Earth Palace to reassure the citizens of Ba Sing Se. But be careful, Aang, the Dai Li is no longer allowed within in the walls and mentioning them or Long Feng could start a panic that we cannot control. And to keep Long Feng thinking that he is unnoticed, we've decided that it be best if only you three went there, no extra soldiers. There is no need for violence when we are promoting peace." Iroh sat back down to let Zuko finish off the details, "The rest of us have decided to stay back, no need to make Long Feng panic. You might be there a while Aang, and, even though I know you won't like it, I think it would be best if you go undercover for the time you are there. That means no more Air Nomad clothing and…covering your tattoos."

Aang took a moment to process the information; they wanted him to hide. He hated the idea. He had spent a hundred years hiding, afraid of his destiny, and now as he was ready to take it on fully, they wanted him to lay low, unbelievable. He should be with the leaders, guiding the people to peace. He should be a symbol of harmony, not some undercover vigilante. He closed his eyes and accepted that it must be done; the world's greatest leader had decided this was best and so should he. Aang breathed out slowly and said, "I understand. Even though I don't particularly _like_ that idea, it must be done. But one other thing, you send three of us would go to Ba Sing Se, who's the third person?"

The monk looked over at Bumi and then at Iroh, they both had comical grins on their faces, Chief Hakoda, on the other hand, looked disappointed. Bumi stood up and spoke, "The person accompanying us is one of the best fighters on the planet, even if she can't bend. In fact, you've fought side-by-side with her so you know exactly how good she is. She's also a brave girl that one is and she has agreed to come from Kyoshi Island to help us in the Earth Kingdom Capital. We are very lucky to have her, and I expect you will treat her with the utmost respect, young Avatar." Aang's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, _Kyoshi Island?_ he thought, _Suki's coming with me? Oh god, how am I ever going to face her? But wait, why is she coming? I had made it clear that I didn't want anyone in harm's way. _Aang opened his mouth to protest but King Bumi cut him off. "Ah ah aaah, Aang," the tall king said, wagging his forefinger at the bald monk, "We've all decided, including Zuko, that this is best. So deal with it!" Bumi snorted with laughter and did a quick spin and plopped back down in his chair.

Chief Hakoda rose and continued, "We've already arranged transport for her and she has graciously accepted this position and she is well aware of the risks involved with this plan and our enemy. As Iroh said before, there will be no extra help. We don't want Long Feng to catch wind of us, and sending soldiers would only add to the damage to both sides. This is the beginning of peace and we must treat it as such. With all this said, it will be three of you against the entire Dai Li organization so I don't need to remind you to be careful out there. If you are confronted, try to stay in character, meaning only Earthbending, no glider, and no Appa. You must learn to rely on Bumi and the warrior; they will be all you have in Ba Sing Se."

Though Hakoda had delivered this speech with confidence, Aang could sense the pain behind his voice. The chief was aching inside, the Hundred Years was had ripped apart his family and even in peace he couldn't be with his children. Aang lowered his gaze, away from the hurt father's eyes. It was Aang's fault that Katara and Sokka weren't here. Once more his selfishness had hurt someone close to him. Aang raised his eyes long enough to say, "I understand. I have one request though." The councilmember's perked up to hear what the Avatar had to say. "I believe it would be better if Zuko could accompany us to Ba Sing Se." Aang could tell Zuko was itching to abandon the pomp and circumstance of the royal life so that he could fight once again. A small smile flashed across Zuko's face, but Iroh quickly interrupted, "I do not think that is wise. Being the Fire Lord is a full-time responsibility, not to mention the scar on Zuko's face. I'm afraid that Zuko must stay here, with his wife." Zuko was saddened that he wouldn't be able to go with Aang, but Iroh did have point; he would stick out like a sore thumb. Plus, he would have leave Mai and he just couldn't do that, especially because they only wed for a week.

Aang bowed low in acceptance and said, "I thank you all very much for your careful planning, but I think I need some time to digest this information." Without waiting for permission, Aang turned quietly and left through dark crimson curtains into the hallway. He desperately needed time to mull this over. He had only just left Ba Sing Se and the pain of what had happened behind, and now he was forced to go back. What if he ran into Katara at the market? How could he even look at her? The thought of Katara and Haru kissing burned his head again and he ran outside for some fresh air. Aang was tempted to make an air scooter and head back to his room, but his days of Airbending were limited and he might as well get used to it. Instead, he walked slowly through the palace, through the courtyard, remember the Dancing Dragon that he and Zuko had put on, all the way back to his room.

He strode through his bedroom to the balcony and sat down quietly with his legs crossed. He placed his fists together, closed his eyes, slowed his breathing and focused on his heartbeat. A blue smoke escaped from his body and transformed into his mentor, Roku.

"_I did not think it possible, but it seems that you are in more pain than last time," the wise Avatar said, with a sympathetic smile._

"_Yea," the Monk sighed, "life's not getting any easier for me."_

_Ruko let out a soft chuckle and responded, "And don't expect it to anytime soon. What is on your mind, young Avatar."_

"_I have to face a problem that I've run away from, and I don't think I'm ready," Aang said with his eyes shifted downwards._

"_You of all people should know that running away from problems only makes it worse. You have done a great job as the Avatar so far Aang, don't ever forget that, but even still there is fear and pain in your heart. Unfortunately, this will never leave. A truly great Avatar learns this quickly and embraces it; he embraces the fear and pain of life and accepts that if must happen. Do not be afraid to face your fears, Aang, do not let them consume you."_

"_But this is a different type of fear," Aang explained, "I'm afraid for myself or even for my friends. I've come to realize that there's always going to danger, no matter what happens. So I don't understand why I'm so scared to go back."_

"_Perhaps it is the fear of the future, what could be. Imagination is a powerful tool, but don't let it run wild. You must learn how to calm your mind."_

"_But how? How, Roku? How am I supposed to live with the fact that Katara didn't choose me, that she'd rather be with Haru? How can I go on knowing that the one person that I've sacrificed everything for doesn't love me anymore and maybe she never did. I was just some little kid to her! Silly little Aang!" As Aang's voice grew louder and louder, Ruko slowly began to fade._

"_You have learned many things on your journey, but now you must learn to let go."_

"_But I can't, Ruko! Can't you see? I can never let go of Katara, I've tried so many times, but I just can't!" Ruko's form vanished._

Aang opened his eyes to see that dusk had settled into night already. He crawled tiredly into his bed, praying for a restful night that he knew he wouldn't get.

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**I know this was kind of a bland chapter, but i needed to set the scene for the next few chapters. Hopefully you could bear through it. And i promise the next chapters are going to be emotionally charged.**

**Don't forget to review! No review goes unnoticed!**


	13. Reaction

**I'm sorry for how long it's taking me to update, one camp just ended and another one is starting in a week, hopefully I can update once or twice in between then, but not promises. This is chapter focuses on Katara and how she handles the news of Aang's departure**

**Disclaimer: I don't own AtlA **

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Reaction

Suki's eyes cracked open slowly, it was still dark outside. Sokka's snoring filled the room and she smiled softly as she quietly flipped around on the bed to face him. She stroked the side of his cheek until his snoring softened and his eyes fluttered open. He smiled when he saw Suki lying next to him; he was the luckiest man in the whole world. He opened his mouth wide and let out a yawn and stretched his arms above his head. He looked back to Suki, squinted out the window, and asked, "Is there any particular reason you woke me up at this time in the morning, or night? I'm not really sure what time it is." Suki flashed the Water Tribe Warrior a look of worry and said, "We need to break the news to Katara."

"Wha—why?" Sokka shot back. "Katara doesn't need anymore to deal with. And who knows, maybe Aang will come back soon. I mean he just left yesterday. Hopefully this little visit will remind of his family." But Sokka seriously doubted this words; Aang had spent most of his time in Ba Sing Se in the infirmary because his sister.

"But I still think she deserves to know. And I don't think Aang's going to be coming back anytime soon," Suki said trailing off. Sokka still didn't know what happened between Katara and Haru, and Suki wasn't completely comfortable telling this to Sokka; it was not her place to talk about Katara's relationships.

"And why would you say that?" Sokka asked, getting close up to Suki's face to inspect her.

"Well, let's just say that Aang left because of Katara."

"You mean because Katara went barbarian crazy on him?" Sokka wasn't following her. Aang seemed much better after leaving the infirmary, something bad definitely happened between breakfast and his departure.

"That… and something else," Suki said shyly, not wanted to tell Sokka about Katara and Haru.

"Oh boy, what did my brilliant sister do this time?" Sokka said with a disapproving face.

"Well, she—let's just say she did something to really make Aang mad," Suki said, turning her face to avoid Sokka's glare.

Sokka squint his eyes, as if to read the back of Suki's head, but finally gave up and said, "Alright, whatever you say, but I did you have to wake me up _so_ early, Suki? You know how much I love to sleep in."

Suki flipped back around on the bed and gave him a light punch in arm and said, "Come on, we should wake everyone else up, too." With a groan, Sokka rolled out of bed and walked over to Suki's side. He lazily held his hands out and Suki grabbed onto them. Sokka yanked her out and held her tight and said, "And then breakfast!"

Suki took Sokka's hand and lead him out quietly through their door into the hallway. She pointed two doors down, signaling Sokka to wake Teo up. Sokka nodded in agreement and tiptoed towards to the door. Suki slowly reached out for the door across from her, Toph's room. Right as her hand made contact with the knob, Sokka stubbed his toe on the wall. The Water Tribe "Warrior" bit down on his lip to stifle a scream and hopped on one foot while clutching his throbbing toes. Suki smiled softly at Sokka's antics and twisted the knob and shut the door behind her, hoping Sokka could handle himself.

Suki took a deep breath in as she turned to face the blind girl who was wrapped her sheets. Toph's snores filled the room, _She's almost louder than Sokka!_ Suki thought. Suki crept silently to the bedside, slightly afraid of what Toph would do if she woken up so early. Suki took a moment to gather her courage and carefully unwrapped the blind girl. When she was done, Toph lied sprawled on her bed, twisting and turning to try to cover herself with the sheets that Suki took away. Suki did her best to wake Toph as gently as possible: whispering in her ear, shaking her shoulder softy, even tickling her dirt-stained toes, but nothing seemed to work. She gradually progressed to more aggressive methods: yanking her hair, punching her side, and finally Suki was fed up with it. The Kyoshi Warrior pinched Toph's nose and put her hand over the Earthbender's mouth. In a matter of second the blind girl's eyes flew open and sat bolt upright with her hands clamped into a tight fist. Suki quickly removed her hand from Toph's nose and held a finger up to her mouth, signaling Toph to remain calm and quiet. But Toph didn't understand, she turned sideways to wind up for a brutal punch, but before she could deliver, Suki jumped out of the way and whispered harshly, "Toph! It's me, Suki!"

Toph let her arm fall to her side and she regained her breath. Toph let out a soft chuckle and said, "Maybe next time you start with that, Fan Girl. In case you haven't noticed, I'm blind," waving her open hand in front of her face. "Oh right, sorry Toph. I was just a little preoccupied thinking you were going to punch a hole through my stomach!"

"Good! You should be scared, especially because you woke up when it's still dark outside!" Toph yelled.

"Shh!" Suki hissed, "Wait, how do you know it's dark?"

"Because the only other person awake in this whole place is clumsy Sokka."

"Wow, I'm impressed. Anyways, we need to talk," Suki said a bit impatiently.

"Ugg! Why couldn't this wait until morning?" Toph moaned, rubbing her eyes.

"Because we—" Suki cut off when she saw a large smile form on Toph's face. Suki stared at the blind girl with a questioning stare until she heard a soft knock at door, followed by a forced whisper, "Suki, it's me. I got Teo awake, open up." _Teo, _Suki thought, _well that explains it_. The Kyoshi Warrior turned around quickly and opened the door, "Perfect timing," she said to Sokka. Teo wheeled in and quietly said, "Hi, Toph." The blind girl respond with an awkward wave that Teo smiled at.

Suki gathered Toph and Teo near the bed and explained the situation to them, "Sorry for waking you guys up early, but we need to be ready before Katara's awake. I know we've been ignoring her because of what she did to Aang, but considering how Aang just up and left, I think we should be more supportive. Last time Aang did that she spiraled for a long time and I'm not going to let that happen again. So during breakfast, I'm going to tell her," she sped up before Toph could protest, "and you all are going to be there for her, okay? She's already had it hard enough living with the fact that she fought with Aang and we don't need her freaking out again." Suki only imagine how badly Katara would handle the information. The first time Aang left, Katara had convinced herself that it was all her fault, but this time, it actually was her fault, although Suki was determined not to let Katara think. She would have to do some quick thinking to shift blame away from Katara. But Suki knew that Aang saw the kiss between Katara and Haru, and she also knew that Katara would come to the same conclusion. She sighed with resignation, Katara and Aang, the perfect couple with the worst timing.

"Uh… Suki? The sun's starting to come up, maybe we should head over to the kitchen?" Sokka asked

Suki's eyes snapped back into focus and she said, "Wha—oh, yeah, I'll make breakfast for everyone." Sokka grinned broadly at the mentioning of food and Toph's stomach growled in agreement.

Suki had just finished served everyone when Katara stumbled into the kitchen with her eyes half closed with her hands up to block the rising sun. "Rough night?" Suki said with a loving smile. "Hm? Yea, I could barely get to sleep considering what happened yester—" Katara froze when she saw everyone seated with food in front of them staring back at her. "Uh, Suki, I thought it was only going to be me and you making breakfast," Katara said, clearly startled by the presence of everyone else. "Yea well, I thought you could use some friendly company this morning." Suki looked at Sokka, waiting for him to say something. He caught her glaze and quickly got up from the table, banging his knee on the underside. He moaned with pain for a moment and then walked over to Katara, without saying a word he pulled her into a tight embrace. Katara's eyes opened widely in shock; Sokka wasn't exactly a huggy person, especially considering they had barely talked recently. With his head still on his sister's shoulder he said, "I'm so sorry, Katara. I know you didn't mean to hurt Aang, but I just needed someone to blame for it, I know I shouldn't have done that. You're my baby sister and I should be protected you, not blaming you. Please forgive me, Katara." The Waterbender held her brother for a while, still in shock. A hug _and _an apology, what was going on? _Oh no_, Katara thought, _Suki must have told them about me and Haru!_ Katara stepped away from Sokka, without accepting his apology and marched over to Suki and said with venom in her voice, "We need to talk, alone." Suki gave her a questioning look, but the dark-skinned girl grabbed her by the arm and stormed out of the kitchen. Before she could go too far, Suki stopped her in the hallway and demanded to know why she was so upset; Suki hadn't even given her the terrible news yet. "Because, Suki," she yelled, "you told Sokka about what happened yesterday! How could you do that? I told you that assuming you would keep you mouth shut! Couldn't you tell how upset I was? Why the hell would you my _brother_ that!" Katara screamed. Suki waited patiently for Katara to drain her anger until responding with, "I did _not_ Sokka, or anyone, anything about yesterday. It's just that something else has come up." Katara stared at Suki through narrow eyes, "What's come up?"

"If you could contain yourself long enough to follow me back to the kitchen, we can discuss this as adults," Suki said, while gesturing to the kitchen.

Katara took a deep breath to settle down and said, through her teeth, "Lead the way."

When Suki entered the kitchen everyone froze and stared as Katara followed her. Suki turned to face Katara and the others, "Okay Katara, the reason we're all here is… well, something happened yesterday." Katara shot Suki a dirty look, worried that she was going tell everyone right now about her and Haru. "You see, um… Aang, he was release yesterday," Katara's eyes grew wide with hope and surprise. She managed to said, "Wh—where is he?" She needed to find him and apologize before things got out of hand, with any luck, he'd never have to know anything her and Haru. She was already trying to find the words to express her regret for what she had done; she dreadfully needed Aang back in her life. She allowed herself a moment joy and reminisced in the memories with the Avatar. Even though the world was at war, those were the happiest moments of her life. And maybe, just maybe, she could have the life she'd dreamt of.

Suki tried to explain what had happened last night, "Well he… yesterday he kinda… you see he was going to…" She just couldn't find the right words. Toph banged her hands on the table and stood up. She walked right over to Katara and said, "Aang left, again, Katara. Yes we know it's awful and all, but crap like this happens, okay?" Suki stared at the blind girl with her mouth wide open, unable to say anything. _Well this is going to end badly_, she thought. Sokka walked over to Toph and nudged her out of the way and spoke to Katara, "Clearly Toph here is a little grumpy because she missed out on her beauty sleep, but what she is leaving out is the fact that we'll be here for this time. You won't have to go through it alone, again." Teo rolled up alongside them and said, "Yea, don't worry, Aang's already left us once, we'll get through it again."

Katara barely heard the words coming out of their mouths; her brain was in overdrive. _If Aang got out yesterday and everyone else saw him, that means he's avoiding me. He left without saying goodbye, _again! _This can't be happening. Wait a minute if Aang was out yesterday and he tried to find me…What if he saw me and Haru? Oh my God, NO! _Katara pushed off the group and ran for the door, she desperately needed to be alone and sort this out. Right as she burst through the kitchen door into the hallway, she bumped into someone and fell to the floor. She stared up through her tearful eyes and Haru standing above her, extending his hand to held her up. She sat there, paralyzed, as she imagined Aang watching as Haru kissed her. Tears started streaming down her face as she pictured the pain and anger that would have flowed through Aang's body. She could hear Haru's muffled voice trying to apologize, but she didn't care; her life was over. There was no way Aang would come back now; she had forced him away for the rest of her life. Haru bent down to pick Katara, but she quickly scrambled to her feet and bolted to her room.

She laid on her bed, letting the reality sink in. _This can't be happening_, she thought. _How could I be so stupid? Why didn't I just stop Haru before he kissed me? Now everything is ruined, Aang's going to stay in the Fire Nation for the rest of his life. And I'll just be some girl he used know. Why the hell didn't I go visit him in the infirmary, I should have begged for his forgiveness! Aang was the best thing that ever happened to me and now I've screwed it all up. He's probably in the palace with twenty girls around either arm. _Her mind wandered back in time to the first time they were Kyoshi Island. Even back then he had a group of girls following him everywhere, trying to spend some precious time with him. She fast-forwarded to Aunt Wu's predication; she was destined to marry "a very powerful bender." And now she pushed away the strongest bender in the entire world all because she was too selfish to apologize to Aang. All of this could have been avoided if she hadn't held a grudge against Aang.

Just then Katara heard a knocking at the door and Suki burst in panting, trying to regain her breath, "I've been looking everywhere for you! We need to talk." Katara turned her back to Suki, she was in no mood to discuss her feelings, she just needed to be alone. Suki stared at the lost girl for a while and said, "I'm not leaving you. I'm going to wait until you're ready talk." The two girls sat on the Waterbender's bed until the sun start to fall. Finally, Katara turned to her face Suki and asked, "What's wrong with me?" Suki waited for her to elaborate before answering. "I had everything I had always wanted. The war was over, my family was safe, my dad was back in my life, and Aang and I could finally start something serious. What happened to all that, Suki? Why is life still so miserable?"

Suki took a moment to think of an answer, "Just because you saved the world, doesn't mean you're going to be happy, Katara. Lots of things go wrong, even when the world's at peace."

"But this time I'm helpless!" she screamed, "I can't do anything to change it! There's no bad guy to go after, there's no enemy this time! There's only me and my mistakes and I hate it!" Suki moved closer to give Katara some much-needed comfort; she slowly stroked the back of the Waterbender and waited for her shoulders to relax before talking. "Everyone makes mistakes, Katara. Aang made a big one by leaving you behind," Suki said, trying to cheer her up, but it didn't work. Katara shrugged Suki off and snapped back with, "And I made the biggest one by kissing Haru. He saw me, didn't he? That's why he left. This time is all my fault and I'm never going to get a chance to apologize."

"You don't know that Katara, he said he some important business to attend to at the Fire Nation and he was needed. How can you be sure he saw you?"

"I just am, okay? I know he did, it's like I could feel his heart break when Haru's lips touched mine. Now just leave me alone," Katara said, burying her head into her pillow. Suki stared at the poor Waterbender, feeling helpless. She slowly got up and left her alone in her bedroom.

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**The next few chapter will have a lot more meat to them, the past two chapters have been setting them up, sorry if they were too slow. **

**Please reviews me! Tell me if you like the tension or think it's too much. and don't forget to favorite me and my story! =]**


	14. Moving On

**I know you guys are hoping for Kataang and stuff, but I really want to take on an adventure twist with the romance, and the past few chapters, including this one, have been an attempt to set up the adventure. I really hate focusing on either Aang or Katara, but don't worry, they'll meet up shortly. In the meantime, please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own AtlA**

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Moving On

Aang spent most of the ship ride back to Ba Sing Se with Bumi. Aang was amazed at how responsible his old friend was and yet he was still very eccentric. Bumi would frequently interrupt Aang during the night and ask him some crazy riddles.

One night Bumi barged in with a piece of paper in his hand and held it out for Aang to read. The Airbender stared at the old king unsure if it was a serious matter or just another stunt. Aang sighed and lazily took the paper, rubbing his eyes to focus on the page. Aang squinted at the paper and looked back and forth between it and his friend. Scrawled across the page was the riddle "Even on the sunniest of days, what remains dark?"

Bumi stared back at the young boy with eyes wide open, rocking left to right on the balls of his feet, waiting eagerly for an answer. Aang tried to concentrate, but he was much too tired, finally he gave up, "Okay, Bumi, what's the answer?"

"Aww, what's the matter, the Avatar's too sleepy to answer an old man's riddle?" Bumi said with his mocking voice.

"Yes, Bumi, that's exactly what it is. Why can't you ever do this in the morning, after I've gotten more than two hours of rest?" Aang said irately.

"Well, what'd be the fun in that?" Bumi said with a twisted smile running across his face. Aang sat on his bed silently, refusing to answer Bumi. Eventually Aang gave up and laid back down to get some much-needed shuteye.

Most of the time spent on the boat was invested into training and preparing for the Dai Li. Bumi's little midnight antics were wearing the young Airbender down. As Aang's breathing steadied, Bumi silently left the room, disappointed with Aang's lack of interest.

No more than three hours the Airbender woke up, this time because he actually wanted to speak with Bumi. He rolled out of bed with a groan, grabbed his gliders from the wall and searched the ship for his old friend, but he wasn't anywhere to be found. Finally, Aang made his way to deck of ship to get some fresh air and then he would head back for some more rest. But when he arrived on the cold metal deck, he found his friend sitting with his back to him, his legs crossed, breathing rhythmically, in and out, in and out. Aang was shocked to find Bumi like this, he definitely didn't seem like the person to mediate on anything. Aang slowly stepped toward the elderly man, careful not to disturb him. When he was no more than two paces from the king, Bumi did a quickspin and whipped his muscular legs in a large circle, knocking the Avatar off his feet, almost to the ground if he hadn't Airbended himself. "What the heck was that for, Bumi?!" Aang yelled.

"It seems like you're the old man, Aang. Maybe you did age while you frozen in that little iceberg of yours," Bumi said flashing another twisted smile and giggling a little bit to himself.

"You were just mediating! I wasn't expecting you to attack me!" Aang said, infuriated that Bumi could blame him for this.

"Well that's a problem," the old king said, stroking his crazy white hair, "the Avatar wasn't expected to be attacked. Hmm… what ever to do about this predicament."

Aang was pissed that Bumi was enjoying himself this much. The Airbender was too frustrated and tired to deal with Bumi at this time so he just turned back to head off to his room. "And just where do you think you're going Mr. Avatar?"

"Back to bed, where I should have stayed!"

"Ah ah ahh, Aang. We need to discuss some things before that happens." Aang groaned at the thought of spending another moment with Bumi right now, but Bumi typically did have a good reason for the crazy things he did. Aang slowly walked beside his tall friend, who had made his way to edge of the ship and was looking across the vast ocean.

"Tell me, Aang. What is it that you see out there?" Bumi asked, gesturing into the dark sea. Aang stared for a long time at the rolling waves, watching the reflecting moonlight and starlight dance across the surface. Tears started to form on his eyes for some reason. He quickly wiped them away, hoping Bumi wouldn't notice, but of course he did. "Now there's a response _I_ wasn't expecting," he said, letting a small chuckle, "What's wrong, Aang?" The Airbender looked away from him and said, "It's nothing, Bumi. Just the sea salt in my eyes."

"Now that's a lie and we both know it," Bumi said, waiting patiently for Aang to reply. The Avatar took his time thinking of what to say, but he didn't know why he was tearing up either. He stared some more at the ocean, looking carefully at the spot where the moonlight struck it at the perfect angle, and that's when he realized it, those dark blue ocean spheres, Katara's beautiful, mystifying eyes. Aang had done his best to leave her behind, and yet here he was, headed right back to Ba Sing Se, the spirits really knew how to mess with him.

When Bumi realized Aang wouldn't open up, he offered some sagely advice, "There comes a time in every man's life where he realizes that he's not always strong enough to face the world on his own. For most people it takes years and years to come to this conclusion. But the wise men always understand this first. The world is a big and filled with complicated people, filled with good and bad people, and good and bad memories. But it appears you still have much to learn, so allow me to help you. When ask people what they see, they typically their response with the obvious, 'water,' 'ocean,' or 'sky.' But you, being an Airbender and the Avatar should have much more to offer," Bumi said, hoping that this would incite an answer from the withdrawn boy.

"I see—I see," Aang trailed off. "Yes, go on, Aang, there is no wrong answer. Although of course there is only one right answer, but never mind that," Bumi chimed in, again with a small chuckle.

"I see, the world, and how it fluctuates, up and down, never ceasing," Aang said, lost in his own words.

"That's very good, Aang," Bumi said, with some pride in his voice, "You are thinking like an Airbender, a true Avatar. This world is your responsibility and I know that sounds harsh considering you're only twelve, but it's the brutal truth that he must face. However, like I said, you don't have to face it alone. There are many old people willing to help you if you would just let them."

"But it's not their duty to, Bumi. I am the Avatar and, just like you said, the world is my responsibility," Aang said, with a touch of indignation in his voice.

"Have you forgotten already how much other's have already helped you along the way? Have you forgotten what your friends did so that you could take on Ozai? Hmm?"

"Why are you bringing this up right now, Bumi? We've been on this ship for almost three days and you choose right now to have a deep conversation with me?"

"Well, why not? It seems like the perfect time to me?" Bumi said, snorted with laughter. "Anyways, back to the ocean. You feel the wind stirring up the waves? This is the disharmony of the world, it is always play, and it will never cease. Every now and then a typhoon will stir the ocean into a crazy frenzy, these are people like Ozai and Azula. But if we're lucky, the clouds will part, the wind will die down and we will be graced with a face fun of warming sun," Bumi waited for Aang to finish the metaphor.

"And—I'm suppose to be that sun?" Aang said with doubt.

"Well, yes and no. You are certainly not the only sun, but you do have the potential to be the brightest and warmest one. You come from a great line of people, Aang. Airbenders were—ahem are respected all around the world, just not many people know of them anymore. Being the Avatar and the last—ahem only Airbender provides you with a special place in history. You are our redeemer and savoir Aang, and don't you ever forget that."

"What exactly are you getting at, Bumi?" Aang asked, wondering why Bumi would be talking to him like this. Bumi was always a light-hearted person, and this seriousness was out of character, even if he was over a hundred years old.

"Hmm… perhaps this is not the best time to discuss it. Maybe you should get some rest, tomorrow we shall start your real training," Bumi said, lost in his thoughts.

"Starting training?" Aang asked with shocked, "We've training ever since we got on this boat! My muscles are always sore, I never get a chance to recover and you're saying tomorrow we'll _start_ training?"

"Hehehe," Bumi laughed, "This time tomorrow you're going to wishing that your muscles are the only things that sore. Now go on, get your rest."

Aang opened his mouth to protest, but Bumi cut him off, "Ah ah ahhh, Aang. You're going to need all the strength you can get for these next few weeks, hehehe," Bumi cackled, thoroughly enjoying himself. Aang turned around without another word and headed back to his room to sleep for whatever was left of the night.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

The next morning Aang stepped outside onto the deck was blinded by the sun overhead. He had slept in a few hours, but that was to be expected after spending the night with a crazy person. Aang sluggishly made his way to where Bumi was sitting, with his broad, muscular back facing the Avatar, the same exact place as last night. Once Aang was within a few paces from the crazed king, he attacked again, but this time, the Airbender was ready. Aang jumped high into air and landed behind Bumi, who turned with a toothy grin on his face, "Good, good, it seems like you're still a fast learner, Aang. Oh and by the way, shadow."

"What the heck are you talking about, Bumi?" Aang asked.

"Oh I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough, in the mean time, enjoy breakfast! I made it myself!" Bumi said with pride in his voice.

Aang stared down at the meal set out on the deck of the ship. He leaned in to get a closer look at the bowl of what looked like soup. It was thick, almost a paste, and was very pale and quite disgusting overall. With his face still down, Aang started to ask, "Uh, Bumi. What exactly is—?" but before he could finish, Bumi reached across and slammed the young boy's face into the soup. Aang smashed the deck with both hands and grabbed the bowl that was stuck to his face and threw it across the ship, and yelled, "What the hell is wrong with you!?"

Bumi cackled, leaned in closer for a better look, and said, "Perfect, although it might have to change depending on how much sun you get." Aang wiped the slop angrily off his face and pointed his finger at Bumi, "I swear, if you don't tell me what's going on I'll—"

"You'll what, Aang? Angrily reprimand me? Please, I'm over a hundred years old; I've had to listen and give every lecture in the book," Bumi with a twinkle in his eyes and a smile across his face.

Aang's nostrils flared with rage, but he breathed in and out slowly, controlling himself. Bumi leaned in to examine the Airbender's face, "Hmm… very good. It appears the monks have done a great job in teaching you how to control your emotions. In any case, that bowl you flung happened to take me hours to prepare, Aang, I'm very upset."

"But it tastes awful, Bumi. It seems like you throw anything from the kitchen into that soup," Aang said with a disgusted face. When Bumi forced his head into that wretched bowl, some of it slid between his lips. The soup was bitter beyond belief and felt chalky in his mouth.

"Aww, Aang, you hurt my feelings," Bumi said with a little pout and then he cracked out laughing. "Just kidding! That was no soup, it was a disguise for you and I must say I did fine job with matching your skin tone, you should be proud of me."

"Disguise for…?" Aang trailed off. Bumi sat there, waiting for Aang to put it together. "Oh right, undercover."

"You didn't honest think you could get anyway with wearing that ridiculous headband everywhere did you? We're not even in the Fire Nation. And anyways it could cover the tattoos on the rest of your body. Speaking of your body, you should really consider working out, you have the muscle density of a twelve year old," Bumi mocked.

Aang stood there, staring unimpressed at his friend's joke. Bumi groaned slightly and stood up next to the Avatar and said, "As promised, we well start our training. First off though, what did you learn after you left me last night."

Aang gave the old man a blank stare, he had gone straight to bed after talking to Bumi, and he barely did anything before meeting with him this morning. Aang shook his head with confusion and then it hit him, _Even on the sunniest of days, what remains dark_. Aang thought back to what Bumi had said so far and he spoke the answer, "Shadows."

Bumi smiled broadly, "Very good, Aang. Now how 'bout you figure this one out without me giving you the answer." Bumi paced back and forth while he recited his newest riddle, "I never was, am always to be, none ever saw me, nor ever will, and yet I am the confidence of all who live and breathe on this terrestrial ball."

"Wait, what? Could you please repeat that, Bumi?" Aang asked with brow furrowed with perplexity.

Bumi smiled wider, "Nope!"

"Come on, you can't honestly expect me to remember all of that," Aang said, growing frustrated with Bumi's erratic behavior.

"Now, now, Aang, you're going to need to be a good listener if you ever want to make it in this world. I believe you should have learned that from Toph and my lectures on neutral gin."

"That's a completely different kind of listening and you know it!" Aang said, his nostril flaring again.

"Nope! It's one in the same. And you really should contain yourself, Aang. If you explode at every little thing you'll make a horrible Avatar," Bumi said, with venom in his voice.

Aang took a few deep breaths to control, but Bumi's words echoed in his head. The old man had struck a raw nerve and the Airbender was having trouble settling down. Bumi saw the young boy close his eyes to concentrate and he laugh manically and thrust a fist into Aang's stomach. The Airbender flew back a few feet and landed on his back. After a few second, he Airbended himself back it his feet and, clutching his stomach, yelled, "Enough!"

"Come now, Aang. You have to be ready for everything if you want to be a halfway decent Avatar."

Air started to whip pass the old man, blowing his white hair in all direction. The wind circled Aang in a chaotic sphere, he slowly began to float and the heavenly blue glow filled his tattoos and eyes. With the voices of his past lives layered on top of one another, he said, "I won't warn you again, Bumi! Stand down!"

Bumi held his hand up high, backed up cautiously and said, "Whatever you say, Avatar Aang." Gradually, the Airbender drifted back onto the deck and the glow faded. He fell onto the metal of the ship and Bumi rushed forward to help him up. But before Bumi reached him, Aang put his hand up to signal the old man to stop. Aang took a deep breath in and forced himself to his feet. Still weak, Aang managed to say in a feeble voice, "What are you doing, Bumi. You're supposed to be helping me."

"I'm trying to Aang, but I warned you last night, it's not going to be easy. Now, go on and take a seat, going into the Avatar State can drain even the strongest of Avatars," Bumi said, slowly lowering Aang to the deck. "You had a terrible life, Aang, there's no sugarcoating that. But I hate to tell that it's only going to get worse from here on out. Facing Ozai took impossible courage and determination on your part and you should be proud of yourself. I saw the way you reacted when I said you'd make a horrible Avatar, you shouldn't have let that bother you. Trust me when I say that no other Avatar could have done what you did. In fact, you still shouldn't know that you're the Avatar. But what's done is done, and we should move on. During your time undercover you must keep your emotions in check at all times. You must stay even-tempered when making your decisions, never let your emotions cloud your judgment. Just remember the monks in your temple and I'll sure you'll be able to clear your mind. This is especially important with your anger, going into the Avatar State while in Ba Sing Se will blow everything, so keep a lid on it. Speaking of which, that would be a great place, mastering the Avatar State."

Aang stared at his old friend with a questioning look, "I'm sorry for doubting you, Bumi, but what do you know of the Avatar State?"

Bumi let out a soft chuckle and explained, "Aang, after you disappeared in that little iceberg of yours, I figured the monks were keeping you busy so I waited a few years to look for you."

Aang looked up, "Wait, you looked for me?"

"Well, of course! I didn't expect me to just wait for you to pop up from nowhere. No, no, I searched around the Earth Kingdom for quite some time, listening for any rumors of the lost Avatar, and I must say they were some wild ones! Some people you were eaten by a dragon or flew into the sun." Aang smiled, he had never given too much thought into what had happened while he was frozen, except the invasion of the Air Temples. It was nice to think that people, besides Zuko and Zhao were looking for him. He laughed at the thought of Bumi scouring the world to find him.

"Ah yes, I had some interesting times on that journey, but I sorely missed you, Aang. And I never gave up hope that were somewhere, perhaps mastering the elements in solitude. But never in a hundred years would I have thought you were in an iceberg. Anyways, my travels eventually brought me to the Eastern Air Temple, where I met a good friend of mine. I believe you know him as Guru Pathik. Though he didn't live there, he had learned much from the monks. He took me under his wing, so to speak, and taught me the way of the Airbender's and after badgering him, he thought me what he knew about the Avatar. You see, I was trying to get as much information about you as possible, and I was hoping that Pathik, being the wise man that he is, would know you're whereabouts, but sadly he didn't. However, he did teach many, many invaluable things about life in general. How else do you think I managed to live this darn long? Hehehe! Anyhow, he noticed my enthusiasm for knowledge and granted me some information about the Avatar State that most people don't know. For example, I know all about the chakras, in fact, Pathik helped me clear my chakras. And I can tell you've made some progress with the chakras, but you aren't quite finished, am I right?"

Aang looked away with shame, he still had trouble forgiving himself for not finishing such an important task. "No. Something, uh, came up during that time."

"Ahhh, you got stuck on the last chakra, didn't you, Aang? And, being a monk, I'm assuming that you had no trouble letting go of your earthly possession, so that means you couldn't let go of some_one_. Monk Gyasto, perhaps? But he's already in the Spirit World, so that couldn't be it. Me? No, that couldn't be…Hmm… Oh! Of course, _Katara_."

Aang winced at the sound of her name.

"Perhaps we should sort this out first." Bumi said, noticing the heartbroken status of the Airbender. "Heartache is a part life, Aang. The older you get, the clearer it gets. But tell me this; do you love Katara enough to let her go? I know this is cliché and all, but it's the truth. As the Avatar, you have a special duty to the people, not just her. I trust you've already discuss with your past lives, and I hope they provided you with some useful advice."

"Well, I only talked to Roku and Yangchen, but their advice kinda contradicted each other. Yangchen was completely against the idea of love for the Avatar, but Roku married Ta Min, right? So obviously he thought it was a good idea," Aang said, trying to convince himself.

"Ultimately the choice _is_ yours, Aang. But may I ask something; why Katara? I mean, she is beautiful and talented young lady, but honestly, Aang, there are many women in this world that would love to be in your company. After all, Katara is literally the first girl you've seen in a hundred years, don't you think, maybe, you should open your mind to the possibilities?" Bumi said, trying to ease the pain of his friend.

Aang didn't, couldn't, respond. He had never given serious thought to that idea. The only time his mind wandered in that direction was when he remembered the kiss between Katara and Haru. That was the single time he would allow himself to think of other girls. _Maybe Bumi's right_, Aang thought, _she never truly appreciated me anyways. I'm sure there's someone out there for me, and why does it have to be her?_ Aang stood back up and looked Bumi dead in the eyes, "You know what, Bumi. I think you're right. It's time to move on."

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**Personally, i feel that Bumi is a really underdeveloped character, so i'm taking this opportunity to give him some interaction with Aang. **

**Please tell me how i did with characterizing him (and don't forget to favorite)!**


	15. Realizations

**Well, it looks like this will be the last chapter for a while. Camp is going to take over my life until school does. From there, the only time I'll get to write is weekends and breaks, but I'll try to do my best to update as much as possible. I'm really sorry about all the grammar mistakes; I just wanted to get this up as quick as possible. **

**Disclaimer: still don't own AtlA**

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Realizations

"Well in the spirit of progression, perhaps it's time to open your final chakra," said the buff, old king said with enthusiasm and eagerness in his voice. Bumi had dreamed of helping the Avatar the way Guru Pathik had helped him, but Bumi was overjoyed that Aang, his oldest friend, had turned out to be the chosen one. The old king smiled with happiness at the chance help Aang realize his full potential.

"Um, Bumi. Not to be blunt, be I don't think you're exactly qualified to be my spiritual leader to enlightenment," Aang said, a little scared at the thought of following Bumi's advice on the spiritual level.

"Nonsense, Aang. I did learn from your teacher, after all and I'm almost as old as him, that's got to count for something," Bumi said, laughing at his own age. "Now, assume your meditative position!" Bumi yelled, stomping his large foot on the deck of the ship. Aang gave him an unsure look, but did as he was told. The Airbender slowly folded his legs, still weak from the Avatar State, and pressed his fist together with only his pinky fingers extended. "Good, good. Now take a few deep breaths and clear your mind."

Bumi took a seat next to Aang, mirroring his position. They sat silently for a few minutes, breathing in and out, slowly and completely. Then Bumi opened one eye and said in an annoyed voice, "Oh this won't do. This won't do, at all."

"What's wrong, Bumi?" Aang said, worried that he was already disappointing his friend.

"Well don't you feel it, Aang. The stomping of the crew underneath, the tug of waves, we'll never be truly calm with all this obnoxious hubbub going on around us," Bumi explained, groaning slightly as he stood up. "No, no, we'll have to do this somewhere else," Bumi said, deep in thought. "In case you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of the ocean," Aang said, getting to his feet and walking the edge of the deck, looking over the vast, endless sea. "Honestly, Aang. You really must learn to consider all the possibilities." Bumi removed his cloak revealing his abnormally strong body. He stretched out his back, loud cracking ensued as his gained a few more inches in height. He slid his feet apart into a comically wide stance. Then he bent down low and slammed the deck with his hands and then thrust them high in the air. His hands stopped at his ears, as if he carrying an immense boulder, and he struggled for a few seconds and his hands shot upwards. Aang looked around the ship, waiting for something to happen, but nothing seemed to change. Bumi remained in his ridiculous position, feet wide apart, hands thrust upwards, wearing a crooked smile, for almost minute and then it happened.

Out in the distance, almost a hundred feet to the left of the ship, bubbles started to churn and the earth started to rumble. Ever so slowly, a plateau, roughly ten feet across, broke the surface of the sea and continue to grow until it reached about thirty feet above the sea. Aang stared in wonderment as the pillar stuck out against the dark blue of the ocean. Water poured off the column, kicking up mist, which caught the sun and created a misty rainbow. "H—how did you do that, Bumi? The nearest earth has to be a few hundred feet underneath, and you're not even on solid ground," Aang asked with amazement.

"While you were spending a hundred years relaxing in that iceberg of yours, I was learning many, many different things. So do you trust me as your spiritual leader?" Bumi asked, pleased at Aang's reaction. The Airbender silently nodded, impressed that even at the king's advanced age he was still an unbelievable strong Earthbender. "Bumi, ca—can you teach me that?" Aang asked hopefully. The old man cracked his knuckles and responded with, "Oh sure, it might take a while, though. But I might as well teach you, considering how we'll have to wait until night to unlock your cosmic chakra. I'll be shocked though, if you can do it by then."

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara woke up the next morning, feeling more tired than she did the night before. Her sleep, or little she managed to get, was rife with nightmares. Her imagination would run wild and she was forced to watch as her worst fears materialized before her eyes. She pictured Aang gliding around, looking for her after he was released for the infirmary. He finally spotted her from afar and landed quietly to surprise her, only to be surprised himself. When he broke through the bushed, his heart was obliterated as Haru kissed her. She could imagine running as fast as he could away from that terrible scene, tears streaming down eyes. She could feel his heartache and the blood pounding his head, trying to make sense of what happened. The dream melted into the future, Aang was back at the Fire Palace, still in shock from what had happened. She couldn't bare seeing Aang so sullen, so defeated, all because of her. Again her dream fast-forwarded before her eyes. Days moved by in blur, only slowing down to see Aang's progression. In beginning, he remained depressed, but every so gradually, he opened up, allowing people to follow him on the streets of the Fire Nations. Groups of girls began to hang outside the palace, waiting eagerly to catch glimpse of the Avatar. At first, Aang avoided them, but as time passed, he indulged them, using the front exit and giving the girls a little wave as he walked along the road. Eventually, he stopped for a polite conversation. More time passed, the groups of giggling girls were following the Avatar everywhere, from the Palace to restaurants to playhouses to teashops, and Aang seemed to be enjoying it. He started walking with his hands around the girls when he left the Palace. Then he began giving them kissed on the cheeks when he returned. Years flashed by. One day, among the throng of women screaming outside the Palace walls, chanting for Aang to come outside, a few women stood out among crowd.

Again, the dream warped to the future, this time settling on the center of town where a stage had been constructed. Flyers had been handed out, and a huge crowd swarmed around to hear the words of the Avatar. They all knew what he going to speak about, but they were all interested in _who_ he was going talk about. Aang took the stage elegantly stepping toward the center; he had grown, a lot, perhaps ten inches. Thick muscles had replaced his baby fat, facial hair darkened along his powerful jaw, the spaces in the robes of an Air Nomad revealed his chiseled body, he opened his mouth and ushered out in a deep, burly voice that sent shivers down the spines of all who listened. He spoke for a few minutes, but it sounded very muffled in her dream. After his speech, he paused and Katara could hear him clearly when he called out the name of his love in his majestic voice, "On Ji." A beautiful woman gracefully ascended the stage; she was dressed elegantly in a scarlet gown, with flashy earrings next to her stunning hair. A necklace graced her collarbone and gave way to unimaginable curves. On Ji's body widened and slimmed in all the right places. And Katara was forced to watch as Aang reached out to the gorgeous lady and spun her around. Aang gazed into On Ji's eyes, and slowly, he closed the gap between their lips and the crowd went wild. Katara could see the passion in their kiss; she could feel his feathery playing across On Ji's lips, she could feel his tongue slid into her mouth, she could feel desire stirring in Aang's heart. And just when she couldn't stand it any longer, everything disappeared.

And then suddenly, in a flash of colors, there she was again, watching as Aang stood in front of the crowd calling out to his love. This time, she could understand more of his speech. "I never thought my life would turn out this way, but I have to say, I wouldn't want to have it any other way. I so happy to say through heartache, I managed to find my one true love, Ty Lee." She glided up to the stage with a wide grin across her face. She walked right up to Aang and the Avatar repeated everything he had done with On Ji. Again and again Aang would call a different woman and every time she would be forced to watch as he passionately kiss her in front of roaring crowd.

She jerked awake with tears already running down her eyes. _This is what I've gotten myself into_, she thought, _I betrayed Aang's trust and now I'm never going to be in his life. How could I let Aang slip through my fingers like that? And what the hell was I thinking going out with someone like Haru. Aang was better in everyway possible. How could I be so stupid not to realize that beforehand. Now he's off in the Fire Nation with who knows many girls wrapped around his pinky. He could have his choice of any girl in the entire world and she would be so lucky to have him. _

Katara remained in her room for most of the day, wallowing in self-pity. She mourned the fact that she forced her best friend, and possibly someone more than that, to leave her. She would have stayed cooped up, alone in her room, unless Suki hadn't come to comfort her.

Suki knocked softly on Katara's door, she could the muffled sounds of sniffles from behind the door. She gave the Waterbender a few seconds to compose herself and then she walked in. Katara looked a mess, tears stained her cheeks, hair stuck out in all directions, bags under her eyes were darkening, and snot was dripping down her red nose. She was in much worse shape than Suki had left her last night. The Kyoshi Warrior took a deep breath and walked forward to Katara's bed where she sat down lightly.

Katara followed Suki as she took a seat next to her. The Waterbender stared helplessly into her eyes, wondering what she going to do now. She waited for Suki to say something, but it was obvious that Katara would have to start this conversation. She thought about what was on her mind, and she debated telling Suki about dreams. Eventually she made up her mind, "I have to find him," she said with determination in her voice.

Suki was startled; she expected Katara to break down into sobs again. She gazed into the Waterbender's eyes and saw something she hadn't seen in a long time; resolve, passion, and fire. It almost spooked Suki to see Katara like this. "Okay, what exactly do you mean by that, Katara?"

"I _need_ to find him," Katara said, staring directly into Suki's eyes.

"And what do you plan on doing once you find him? Apologize?" Suki asked, not following Katara's thoughts.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get him back."

Suki sighed, clearly Katara wasn't thinking straight. Running headlong at Aang wouldn't solve anything. Actually, it would probably make things worse. She couldn't imagine how Katara would react if Aang rejected her.

"And how do you plan on finding him?" Sui asked skeptically.

"I don't know; I'll send a messenger hawk to Zuko maybe. Or—or I could ride on a ship to the Fire Nation," Katara said, frantically trying to think of a plausible way to find Aang.

Suki indulged her, "And what do you plan on telling him once you find him?"

"Anything to get him back, _anything_. I'll plead, beg, for him to at least let me talk to him so I can explain what happened. I just need him to know that what happened was a huge mistake and I can understand that he's upset."

"And that's it? You'll take a boat all the way to Fire Nation and tell him that it was a mistake. You'll just leave after that?"

"If that's what he wants, then yes."

"Katara, a few seconds you said you were willing to do anything to get him back, and now you're settling for just apologizing. Maybe it's time you think about what you want," Suki said, concerned that Katara was planning things before she gave any real thought to the situation.

"Look, Suki. All I want is to have Aang back in my life, even if he's only my friend, I'll learn to live with it. What I can't live with is having Aang hate me for the rest of our lives." Images of her nightmare flashed before her eyes, she shuddered as the kiss replayed in her head.

"Is everything alright, Katara?" Suki asked cautiously, noticing the shiver.

"Hm? Yeah, everything's fine."

Suki stared skeptically at the Waterbender, "How 'bout this. You forget about Aang for a while. Long enough to may be interested in someone else," Suki held up her hand to prevent Katara from interrupting, "Hold on, Katara, hear me out. Sure Aang is great and all, but you have to realize that he is in fact the Avatar, that means he'll be traveling all over the world, meeting different people everyday. And let's not forget about the group of girls that will always be stalking Aang around. Trust me; if my island could be so devoted to a past Avatar imagine what girls would be like around Aang." Suki saw the look of horror and pain creep into Katara face, "My point is that maybe Aang's not the right guy for you. I think you should give other guys a chance."

"But why should I, Suki? Aang is perfect in everyway!" Katara said, almost screaming at Suki for proposing that idea.

"Do you even hear yourself, Katara? How can you even know that if you've never even been with another guy? How could you be so sure that 'Aang is perfect in everyway?'"

"I just know, okay? And who are you tell about first loves. You were the first decent girl that Sokka ever liked."

"Well that's not true. Maybe we did meet first, but I know all about him and Miss Princess of the Northern Water Tribe," Suki spat out with some venom. "But that just proves my point, even Sokka's knows to give other girls a chance."

"Well what about you, Suki?" Katara asked, curious about Suki's previous romances.

"Oh please, I've been with enough simple-minded boys to know that Sokka's a keeper," Suki answered with a faint smile. Although this was reassuring for Katara, she still couldn't understand what Suki found so irresistible about her brother.

"But I'm not the one hell-bent on finding my first love."

"What is it with you, Suki? Why are you so keen on splitting Aang from me?"

"Katara, it's not like that, it's just—"

"What do you have against Aang and me?"

"You I'm just trying to—"

"Trying to what? Crush all my chances at happiness?" Katara asked, trying to blame someone for her misery.

"Katara! That makes no—" Suki said, growing frustrated with the Waterbender.

"Then what, Suki?! Why does everything in my life have to be so damn complicated? Why can't things just work out for once? And why do I always have to do something moronic and push Aang away like that?" Katara yelled, angry at the world around her. Everything seemed to falling apart at the seams for her. Nothing ever went right since Sozin's Comet. Her last moment of peace was the kiss she had shared with Aang. _The kiss_. She had almost forgot that glorious moment in the fog of confusion and pain that occurred since then.

Suki paused for a moment to let Katara settle down. "And that's exactly why I think it's an awful idea for you to see Aang again. You always get this way when something bad happens between you two and don't like seeing you hurt like this. Why can't you just let him go and move on with your life and leave the pain behind? I'm trying to protect you from the heartache of pursuing Aang, that's all. Please, just take my advice, Katara," the Kyoshi Warrior begged.

Katara thought about what to say for a few seconds, "Would you leave Sokka if I told you something like that? What if he was the Avatar? Would you honestly just give up on him?"

Suki took a deep breath in and let out a defeated sign.

"I didn't think so," Katara said.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

"Well, well, Aang. I must say; I am impressed. I really didn't think you'd be able to learn that quickly," Bumi praised the young Avatar who was covered with sweat. Long bending took some serious stamina and energy. "Although, considering you are the Avatar, perhaps I shouldn't be so surprised," Bumi added, who was also glistened in the evening sun.

Aang's knees wobbled slightly and he lowered himself onto the cool metal deck of the ship. "I never thought bending could be _that _hard, Bumi."

"Oh you have much to learn my young Avatar, but don't worry old Bumi will help you. That is if I don't keel over!" Bumi said, letting out his high-pitched cackle.

Aang lifted his head off the deck to look at the hunched-over man, "I have no idea how you were able to get that huge pillar out of the ocean. I could barely get the water out there to move. Even bending the clouds is hard."

"Bending while not connected to an element is tricky, but it is unmistakably useful. If you remember, I used that exact trick to get myself out of that metal box in Omashu," Bumi said with a large grin spread across his face.

Aang slowly sat up and said, "I can't believe you could do that! All you did was move your chin and summon the earth up to you. I guess I do still have a lot learn," Aang added, slightly disappointed with himself.

"Well don't worry, Aang. You've got a hundred years to learn all that. In the meantime I think we should head out to the pillar. It was very nice of the captain to pull along side it like that," Bumi said, grateful that the captain was willing to take this little detour.

"Aw, Bumi, do we have to do it right now. My muscles are already getting sore and I don't think I'll be able to mediate properly with them throbbing like this," Aang complained.

"Oh boo woo, the little Avatar's hurting. Maybe all the worlds villains will give him a break," Bumi mocked the aching boy. "It builds character, Aang. And trust me, you'll be needing it soon enough. Now come on, the night's burning away."

"Fine," Aang conceded, rising reluctantly to his feet. He walked to the edge of ship and looked for the rowboat to take them to the pillar.

"Ah ah ahhh, Aang. It seems that I get very seasick on those tiny boats so maybe you just jump across," Bumi said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Aang glanced at the pillar; it was only about fifteen feet out and maybe ten feet high, easily achievable with his Airbending. Aang took a breath and squatted down, ready to leap in the air. But before he could, Bumi interrupted him, "Aren't you forgetting someone?"

Aang stood back up and gave Bumi a questioning glance. After a few seconds Aang's eyes widened and he took a few cautious steps away from the old king saying, "No. No way, Bumi! Not happening."

"Oh come now, Aang. You're not willing to give a poor, old man a lift?" Bumi whined with a faint smile.

"Bumi, you're like solid muscle! There's no way I could get you up there!" Aang said, fearing what might happen if he tried.

"I don't like your attitude, Aang. You should really try to have some more self-esteem. I'm sure you can do it, now come here, don't be afraid. You're going to have to do a lot harder stuff than carrying an old guy across a puddle."

Aang took a deep breath and walked slowly toward Bumi. Aang stared the large man, trying to figure out a way to carry him. Eventually he decided to take Bumi for a ride. The Avatar backed up about fifteen paces and took off running at the old man. Bumi lost color in face as Aang slammed into him and lifted both of them far into the air. They soared far into the air and Bumi landed with a loud grunt and Aang softly touched down next to him.

Bumi lifted himself back onto his feet and brushed himself off, "Bonus points for style, Aang," he said with a grin. "Now then, to the serious business." Aang wiped the smile off his own face and slowly lowered himself to ground, wincing at the acute pain that shot up his legs. Crossing his legs took an immense amount of effort and holding his arms still sent a burning sensation up his sides. Aang took a few deep breaths and placed his fists together, leaving his pinky pointing outward. Bumi sat across from him, again mirroring his form. "Now clear your mind, Aang. Leave all the pain of your physical body behind, focusing only on the spiritual side."

When Bumi heard Aang start to breath steadily, he continued, "The thought chakra is located at the crown of the head. It deals with pure cosmic energy, and is blocked by Earthly attachment. Mediate on what attaches you to this world."

Images flashed through Aang's mind. Waking up in Katara's arms, exploring the Fire Navy ship in the South Pole with her, taking her through the Southern Air Temple, trying to impress her by riding the Elephant Coi, and another image cut through it all. Haru's lips pressed against Katara's. But slowly the image faded into the Cave of Lovers, staring deeply into Katara's ocean blue eyes, leaning in slowly as the candlelight dwindled. Another image took over, Katara's dressed in her dazzling green outfit, _their_ lips pressed together.

Bumi cut in, "Now, let all of those attachments go. Let them flow down the river, forgotten."

Pain ripped through Aang's body, centering on the scar on his back. The Airbender's body went stiff as the fiery, burning feeling returned to his back, he could feel the lightning tearing through his flesh. And suddenly it was gone; he could see Katara again, this time they were on the Fire Navy ship. Her eyes welled up when she saw that Aang was going to be all right. Aang's eyes teared up as well, and he opened his them to see Bumi sitting in front of him. "I can't do it, Bumi. I still can't let go of her. It doesn't matter what she's done; I do still love her. I'm sorry," Aang apologized, wiping the single tear on his cheeks, rising to his feet.

"Now that's a problem, Aang. Seeing as how once again you've locked the charka, you wouldn't be able to go into the Avatar State."

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**Hopefully all you die-hard Kataang fans can be hopeful for Katara and Aang now! They seem to be headed down the right path. **

**Please, please, PLEASE review me! Tell me if you like my story and what I'm doing the characters, especially the Kataang relationship. (for all of you who aren't authors, your reviews motivate me to update quicker!)**


	16. Patience

**Hopefully this chapter is up to expectations. I've only been to write pieces at a time so with any luck it will still flow nicely. **

**(Just a side note, in case you were wondering, there is a slight time gap between the Katara and Aang part of the story. Aang's part is roughly three weeks ahead of Katara's.)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own AtlA. Only this FanFic!**

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Patience

"So will you help me?" Katara asked, slightly irritated with Suki's logic.

"Help you with what?" Suki asked, puzzled by her aggressive tone. Katara seemed to need help a lot recently, but this was first time she had actually asked for it.

"With finding Aang!" Katara said with passion in her voice.

Suki looked straight into the Waterbender's stubborn eyes, and said, "Katara, you can't honestly be planning on going after him? He could be anywhere in the world, literally! And by the time we found him, he'd be gone. In case you didn't realize, we don't have Appa anymore. Plus, Aang would be surrounded by tons of people; you'd never be able to talk with him alone." Katara winced at the mention of Aang being the center of attention. Her mind snapped back to the horrible nightmare she had just had. "And you haven't even thought about what you're going to say to him, Katara. If, _if_, Aang did see you, which I'm not saying he did, you're going to need a really good reason for him to listen to you. Maybe you should just take some time to think about. Why don't we give the whole academy a day off so we can discuss this with everyone before you go rogue and search endlessly for Aang?" Although Suki might have exaggerated a little, she was fairly certain that Katara would spend years seeking out Aang and just wouldn't be worth it for either of them. Suki sighed softly as she saw Katara look down with shame.

After a few moments, Katara looked back up into Suki's eyes and said, "I guess you're right. I can't just up and leave like before. I've got to think this through if I'm going to do this right. Wait here, I'll go to the mess hall and spread the word; I'm sure the students would be glad to have the day off." Suki watched with a confused look as Katara walked out of her room, this was one of the first times she had actually agreed with the Kyoshi Warrior's advice.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Bumi groaned slightly as he rose to his feet. He walked close to the Airbender, gazing into the stars for a few moments until laying his hand on the Avatar's shoulder. "Maybe it's time to confront your feeling, Aang? I think you need to dig deep into your thoughts and decide what it is that you want from this life. Many times we can find life's toughest answer within ourselves."

Aang lifted his head to meet Bumi's gaze; there was much pain in old man's look, coupled with sympathy. "Yea, I could definitely use a few days to relax and meditate."

Bumi gave the Avatar a surprised look, "A few days? Who said anything about a few days? I might you could have the rest of the night off!" Bumi cackled and said, "Goodnight, Mr. Avatar. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow." Bumi bent low and thrust his arms at an angle towards the ship; two small pillars erupted underneath his feet and launched him in the air. He landed on the metal deck with a heavy grunt and continued walking slowly to the cabin.

Aang sighed heavily, _I'm never going to get a real break with Bumi. Everyday it's something new with him. Tomorrow will probably be even worst than today. Wait a minute_…

Aang sprinted quickly to the edge of the pillar and leaped in the air, landed silently on the deck. He quickly ran to Bumi, whose back was still facing him, and said, "Wait, tomorrow—"

Bumi stopped, and said, "Yes, Aang, tomorrow. Bright and early. The same spot as this morning. And hopefully you'll actually get some rest tonight."

Aang stopped a few paces away from his mentor, "No, wait, tomorrow is the answer to your riddle! 'I never was, am always to be, none ever saw me, nor ever will, and yet I am the confidence of all who live and breathe on this terrestrial ball,'" Aang said excitedly, quickly rushing through the riddle. Aang was much too energized to mimick Bumi's dramatic voice when he first spoke the riddle.

"And you said you weren't paying attention," Bumi said with a broad smile across his face, his back still to the young Avatar. "How 'bout a quick one to ponder as you fall asleep. 'What falls but doesn't break, and what breaks but doesn't fall?'"

"Aw come on Bumi, can't I at least savor the fact that I actually remembered and answered that riddle that made absolutely no sense? Couldn't I have one night of peace?" Aang said, irritated that Bumi was pushing him so hard. Training was taxing enough, but the added mental and emotion stress recently was making things tough. He almost longed for the days when Ozai was his only problem, almost.

"Now, now, Aang. You shouldn't be so proud yourself, it was once said that Avatar Kyoshi called recall conversation from her childhood when she was older than I am. I don't think you should be so happy that remembered ten seconds of speech from this morning. And I'm sure if you stay up long enough, you'll figure out the answer first thing in the morning," Bumi finished with a crooked smile, vanishing underneath the deck, into the labyrinth of corridors.

By the time Aang had reached his room, the ship lurched forward, continuing its journey to Ba Sing Se. It appeared as if their spiritual detour was over. Aang thought about Bumi's words regarding introspection as he drifted off to sleep.

Aang was flying over Ba Sing Se, just as he was when he was searching for Appa all those months ago. He was still searching for something again, but he wasn't sure what he was looking for. Suddenly, his glider slipped through his fingers, and he started falling from the sky, desperately trying to Airbend himself to soften the fall, but nothing was working. He closed his eyes tightly and screamed as he fell to the ground. Aang waited with horror as he imagined himself slamming into the earth.

His eyes remained shut for a minute, and then he began to wonder how he was still alive. When he opened his eyes again, he was very disorientated, light and sound seemed to be coming from all directions. He could hear water gushing all around him, yet there was no water to be seen. The sound echoed around and around the dome-shaped room he was in. Slowly he began to gain his bearing and he tried to examine the walls, but there was something odd about them. They weren't made of any substance he knew. They seemed to consist of ice, the gentle curves and uneasy clearness of the wall made him think it was in fact ice. But when he gathered the courage to touch it he found that it was didn't not ice. Although the surface was cold, it wasn't cold enough to be an ice formation. Plus, the wall was more translucent than any ice he'd ever seen. As he ran his fingers along the surface, he was shocked to find how smooth the substance was, even with all the crags, bumps, and crevices riddled throughout it. If concentrated on the forms behind the glass, he could barely make out a few objects, a bucket, and a pair of shackles perhaps. But if he moved the slightest bit, the object would morph into a different, unrecognizable shape, as if the wall wouldn't allow him to see what's behind it.

He turned his attention to the ground. Every few feet, rocks jutted up from the ground at crazy angles. When he approached them, he realized they weren't rocks; they were crystals, like the ones from underneath Ba Sing Se. Except these one gave a very faint red glow, a hellish glow. He was certain that in the dark these crystals would shine with a blood-red tint. A shiver ran down his spine and decided to look elsewhere.

He did a slow circle around the large room, rough 75 feet high and wide. Then he turned his eyes skyward, or at least to where the sky should be. The silvery substance continued up in a dome-shape until very top, where it left three feet opened. Light poured from this hole and yet the entire room was bathed with light, not just a single spotlight in the center. He tried to Airbend himself up to get a closer look, but he still couldn't. He slowly followed a beam of light and noticed that it actually entered wall and bounced around a few times before striking the floor. It was as if the walls themselves were crystals that gave off soft white light instead of the foreboding red glow of the crystals on the ground. He was still staring at the hole in the ceiling was a thin object cut through the light. It spun around in the air and it fell softy before coming to a stop on the ground. Aang walked cautiously towards the mysterious item and bent down to examine it. He looked at it few a seconds, unable to comprehend how a piece of wheat could make it's way to this clandestine place. But before he could think about, the dream melted away.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

"Can't anyone get a little shut eye in this place?" Toph yelled as she entered the kitchen, earlier in the morning than she ever wanted to.

"Seriously, Katara. Why did you wake us up this time?" Sokka whined, rubbing his eyes.

Katara smiled slightly, grateful to at least be talking with the Gaang again, even if that meant hearing their endless complaints.

"Actually, it's not that bad. At least you got some sleep last night," Teo said to Sokka, but looked at Toph. She blushed and turned away, hoping that no one had noticed their nightly adventures together.

"Trust me, Sokka. You'll be glad she woke you up before she did something far more rash," Suki said, still upset that Katara was actually considering leaving to search for Aang. Sokka gave his girlfriend a confused look, waking him up in this early in the morning was pretty rash.

"Okay, so why are we having this family meeting exactly and, not that I'm the responsible one, but shouldn't we be getting ready for class?" Sokka asked.

Suki answered instead of Katara, "Well I thought this was important enough to let the students have a day off, and I could honestly use a break, too."

"Well there's no arguing with that. So what's on your mind, Sugar Queen?," Toph asked, a little impatiently.

"I want to—I think it would be if—I've decided to go look for Aang," Katara stammered. No one spoke, no one even moved. Sokka gave his sister a blank stare, as if not comprehending what she had just said. Toph looked confused as to why this was coming now. Teo stared Katara, unsure what to say next. Suki stayed leaning against wall, waiting for someone to chime in.

There was awkward silence between the Gaang until Katara asked, "Come guys, you all want him back, don't you?" She desperately wanted someone to at least have some input.

Sokka cleared his throat and, in a serious tone, said, "Of course we do, Katara. We all want him back, but you have to face the facts. He's the _Avatar_, he'll be hopping from city to city making peace speech and doing ceremonial stuff. It's not like how it used to be, the bad guys are done for and now Aang needs to help the world move onto the peaceful time that we helped bring. We had a great run with him Katara, I still wonder how bland our lives would be if he never found him in that iceberg, but it's time for him, and us, to move on."

Katara was shocked; she stood there with her mouth slightly opened as Sokka calmly analyzed their situation. She responded with, "Sokka how can you say that? This Aang we're talking about! We rescued him from that iceberg and we were with until he faced to Fire Lord! We helped him through training and gave him encouragement and watched him grow up! How could you just let him go like this?" She paced back and forth, her hand flailing as she accused Sokka.

"Because maybe he wants it! Have you even thought that he left because he wanted to! You can be so stubborn sometimes, Katara, you don't even think that _you_ might the problem." Suki tried to cut Sokka off before he could continue, but clearly the damage had been done. Tears started to well up in the Waterbender's brilliant eyes, blood rushed to her face, her nostrils flared, and her hand clenched tightly into a fist.

Suki stepped in between the bickering sibling and forced them apart and said, "Sokka I don't think you should be testing her right now."

Sokka opened his mouth to protest, but he saw Katara's reaction to his words, and he just closed his mouth and sighed. "I'm sorry, Katara. I miss him to sometimes, a lot actually. And it's just nice to blame someone else for that, but I know it's now your fault. But that still doesn't make looking for him a good idea. If he needs us, he knows where to look. Until then, I think we should stay here and continue building this life we've started."

"Well in case you haven't noticed, I'm the only one with someone at the moment! Even Toph has Teo!" Toph and Teo were about to protest, claiming they were just friends, but Katara plowed through them, "Oh just shut it, we all know you've been sneaking at night. We can you laughing and giggling when you guys come back." Toph's faced turned a vibrant shade of red and Teo looked away to hide his color. "But I have no one. Aang should be here with us, with _me_," her voice started to rise as thought angrily about Aang walking hand-in-hand with another girl.

Suki tried to calm her down, "Katara, it's okay to feel that way, but going on a manhunt for Aang is not that answer."

Toph decided to chime in, "Anyways I'm sure that little Airhead is just as crazy without you as you are without him."

Katara smiled slightly at that thought, but then realized that Toph didn't know what had made Aang leave in such a hurry. She closed her eyes and cursed herself silently; she managed to screw everything up in a matter of one week. They had spent months and months together, living side-by-side, running from danger, training rigorously, and now it was all for nothing.

Teo followed Toph's example, "Yea I'm sure he's just as confused as you. And if he didn't have Avatar duties he'd be right by your side."

Sokka joined in, he moved closer to his sister and said, "I agree with Teo. If didn't have to be in the Fire Nation, he'd be here, teaching Waterbending and Earthbending and maybe even Firebending. And one thing's for sure, he'd be a better teacher than all of us combined. It's actually kinda odd thinking about Aang teaching someone else; considering we spent the whole time teaching him. Wait! I got it! It was so obvious" Sokka's eyes grow wide and pointed upward with his find, in a dramatic voice he shouted, "Welcome to… _The Avatar Academy_! Ah? Aaah?" Sokka stood there comically, waiting for some commentary on his possible name for the training center. Suki coughed awkward and pulled him over for a quick word, "Um, Sokka, I don't this is the right time to be discussing the name of the center. I think we should be focused on keeping Katara here." Sokka looked like a little kid whose mother took away his last piece of candy, "But—but…Suki." The Kyoshi Warrior gave Sokka her serious look, signal that now was not the time for his normal lighthearted self. Sokka sighed deeply and the two turned back to the group, who had waited uncomfortably for them to finish.

Sokka cleared his voice and spoke, "As I was saying before I was attacking by that brilliant idea, Aang isn't just some Air Nomad, he is the Avatar whether we like it our not. And we should respect that fact." Sokka desperately hoped that Katara would heed his logical advice. It pained him to see his sister hurt like this, but soon or later it would happen, and she have to learn to let go. After a few moments of silence, Suki spoke, "How 'bout this Katara. We wait. Patiently. For… I don't know maybe three months. Then we can have this conversation again and if you still go searching for him, we can make the proper arrangements and we'll come with you. How does that sound?" Suki finished, waiting for a response.

Katara remained staring at the ground, giving no feedback to Suki's idea. Thankfully Toph broke the silence, "I don't know about you guys I sure could use some adventure again. Teaching is fun and all, but nothing's quite like traveling the world and facing bad guys."

Teo's face brightened up at the thought of that, "Man I've been itching to get out in the open air and glide around. I love finding new places explore. I'm in for a world adventure."

Suki looked over to Sokka who looked deep in thought. "That does make the most sense, Suki. But making plans for all that is going to be hard, we need to find suitable replacement," he counted on his fingers, "a reliable source of transportation—"

"Oh shut it, Sokka! We'll get to that when we get to that," Toph cut in. Sokka closed his mouth and placed his hand back to his side. The three of them looked at Katara, waiting for a response. They braced for an explosion of emotion they expected Katara to have because of the three-month waiting period. However, Katara quietly agreed with the plan, "Alright, I think I can wait three months. I'm sure Aang would be willing to wait a lifetime," she said, hoping that no one would sense her uncertainty. What if they scoured the planet and never found him? Or worse, if they did find him and he didn't want her anymore? Should she tell them what he had seen before they embark on that journey? She took a quick breath to settle herself before questions and doubts could flood her mind any further.

She walked out of the kitchen without another word and headed back to her room, wondering if she could, in fact, last three months without losing her mind.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara spent the next three weeks filling every waking moment and indulging herself in the sleeping ones. She would hours upon hours sleeping during the weekends, but during the weekdays she would do anything to pass the time. She would do extra chores, run to the market after dinner to restock, scour seedy shops for exotic items, barter with intimidating men for even a glimpse at a Waterbending Scroll. In fact, she would spend most of her time inside Ba Sing Se's markets than in the Avatar Academy itself. She found it was easier to distract herself with the hustle and bustle of the Earth Kingdom Capital. One of these days, returning from the market, she spotted three people approaching the academy. She stopped on the hill that overlooked the training center and the three people walked away from her towards the building. Something inside her jumped at the sight of the small group. In a few hours she would know exactly why she reacted this way.

**Who are these mystery people? Keep reading! (hopefully i'll be able to post within a week)**

**And please, for the love of god, review me! do you like Katara's predicament? do you like the name of the academy? how bout the foreboding dream/nightmare of Katara and Aang? please just say something! (And thanks to all of you who review me every time!)**


	17. Goodbye

**By the way, the more you insist that I update, the more likely I am to write. I've been getting a lot of hate about not having fluffy Kataang moments, but you have to realize that this story is meant to be a looong one (probably best to read it all the through once I finally it). I'm trying to go for a true romance novel. That means you're going to have to accept the fact that Katara and Aang aren't together at the moment, but I promise you (eventually) them will be together. In the meantime, find another fluffy fanfic to hold you over.**

* * *

Goodbye

Aang gasped as he bolted upright, cradling his head after his mysterious dream. He desperately tried to remember the details, but most of it was lost in the fog of his subconscious, but one thing remained crystal-clear; the single piece of wheat falling gracefully through the light. He moaned softly and he forced himself out of bed, silently cursing the sleepiness that refused to leave him. He grabbed his glider and headed out to the deck, half-expecting to see Bumi sitting cross-legged in his same spot. But when he reached the open deck, he was met instead by a breathtaking sunrise. The fireball crept above the far off horizon, bathing the sky in awe-inspiring reds and oranges and streaks of purples and blues cutting through. He walked slowly to the edge of ship, his mouth agape at the beauties of nature.

"I thought you might enjoy this," Bumi said from behind the Airbender. Aang snapped into action, swinging his glider around and pointing directly at Bumi's face. Aang took a quick breath in and quickly apologized, "Oh sorry, Bumi! I didn't realize it was you." He gradually lowered his glider to his side.

"No need to apologize my young Avatar. Killer instinct will serve you well where we're headed." Bumi walked alongside of the Airbender and put his hands on the rail, enjoying the view. "You know, even after living as long as have, one thing you can never get bored of is a magnificent daybreak," Bumi said, with a sly smile appearing on his face.

Aang returned his gaze to sky when something occurred to him, "Hold on. Daybreak…day_break_. 'What falls but doesn't break, and what breaks but doesn't fall.' Daybreak fits the second part, so nightfall and daybreak!"

Bumi's smile turned into a full, toothy grin, "Very good, Aang. You're getting much better at this. However it seems like our training might be on hold for today," Bumi said.

Aang's eyes widen as he pictured a day without the gruesome task of following Bumi's word. They had been on the boat for little over a week and yet it felt like a lifetime. The Avatar barely had any time to himself and he was constantly stressing about Bumi's next challenge. And it wasn't just the physical aspect either. Bumi focused on the spiritual part of his duties, too, which Aang felt ashamed of. Being an Airbender, mediating should come naturally, but it was only stressful for the young Avatar. His concentration was broken by the smallest of distraction and Bumi would notice this every time. Fasting didn't help concentrating either. If Aang thought the banana and onion juice was, Bumi's wild concoction of liquids and pastes was revolting, and yet he claimed it calmed the nerves.

Bumi allowed Aang a few moments to savor the thought of day before indicating why exactly he wouldn't be training today. The elder king lift his right hand and pointed at the Sun. Aang followed the old man's finger and squinted against the brilliance of the star. The Avatar was about to ask what he meant when he saw it; the sun's brightest almost masked the small shiver of Ba Sing Se. But even from this distance, the walls of the Earth Kingdom Capital were still visible. Aang look around the ship with a careful eye, off in the distance he could begin making out shore in all directions. A shiver ran down Aang's spine when he looked off to the east; the Serpent's Pass. He quickly changed the subject, "We must have made great time during the night," Aang said, unable to remember any sight of land before he went to sleep last night. "Yes, I told the captain to speed things up a little. There's somewhere we need to go before we get settled in. And I figured you weren't fond of our little exercise on the boat."

Aang lowered his head for moment, ashamed of what Bumi had said. Aang should have been grateful to have a friend like Bumi and to be learning from some such a wise man. Slowly, he raised his head and stared into the elderly king's eyes; he saw doubt creep into the normally crazy eyes of his. "Where exactly are we going?" Aang asked. Bumi turned away trying to avoid Aang stared, but he persisted, "Bumi! Where are we going?"

The old man let out a sigh and answered the young Avatar's question, "I was really to avoid this, but you left me no choice. You see the charkas are constantly in motion, new obstacle filling the space in between, blocking the flow of energy. Lets see, Guru Pathik probably showed you to the pools with the algae stuck in it. Well just because you unclog it once doesn't make it permanently fixed. If I remember correctly you did manage to clear you're cosmic charka underneath Ba Sing Se, right?" Aang took a deep breath un and, nodded and added, "But before I could do anything, Azula shot me right in the back," while unconsciously rubbing the scarred tissue.

"Hmm… yes that was quite an unfortunate turn of events," Bumi said, stroking his mangled white beard. "And as you learned this blocked you're chi and ended your chances of entering the Avatar State. That this until…"

"Until the fight with Ozai," Aang finished, taking a deep breath in and out, remembering the pain and rush of energy in that moment.

"And since then you haven't had the need to reach the Avatar State. I don't mean to sound disappointed but I was really hoping you be able to. But let's be serious here, you are the youngest Avatar to be told of his destiny. And you've probably had the hardest challenges. However, not much is known about this rebellion, and I think it would best if you were able to go in and out of the Avatar State at will. And so, in order to clear your mind, I was thinking that we would pay you friends a little visit, hopefully clear up some unfinished business."

Aang took a moment to process Bumi's proposal, but it didn't take long for Aang to realize that this wasn't the best idea. "Bumi, I know you're trying to help but I honestly don't want to talk to Katara right now. I think it's best if I just forget about her, okay?" Aang said, still hurt from the betraying kiss.

"Well that would be okay, but you haven't been doing it. It's already been a month since you've seen her, and yet I can still see the heartbreak written all over your face and eyes. Guru Pathik taught me that sometimes we need to do things that we don't want to. And you of all people should understand this, Mr. Avatar. Confronting her is the only to put this behind, trust me. I've been in your position once upon a time," Bumi sighed in nostalgia, but cleared his throat and continued, "You and Katara have much to talk about and knowing you, you probably didn't stop for goodbye." Bumi stared at Aang accusingly. "But don't worry, you are young and stupid. Hehe… but you will learn, Aang. It's all a part of the journey and there is skipping about on our journey."

Aang lowered his eyes, Bumi was right; he never got to say goodbye to Monk Gyatso. Aang lifted his head and agreed with the old king, "Alright, Bumi. You _are_ my master now, I guess I'll listen to your words of wisdom."

"Now that's more like it! But I don't like the sound of 'master,' it's much too formal. After all we are the same age, how 'bout… mentor?"

"Sure, that's good Mentor Bumi," Aang said with small smile, glad to have someone for his time by his side.

"That's Mentor _King_ Bumi to you, sonny!" Bumi cackled, throwing his head back. He added, "Just kidding, Aang. Now go on and get packed we should be arriving at the docks within a few hours and there's someone I want you meet," Bumi said with a crooked smile.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Bumi took a deep breath in and exhaled loudly, "Ahh, there's nothing quite like the smell of the Earth Kingdom Capital, is there? The thin layer of earth lingering in air, filling the nostrils." Bumi had a large grin on his face, happy to back on solid ground. Bumi stomped around in circle, enjoying the feeling of earth underneath his bare feet. All those days at sea were making him queasy, although he didn't like to show it.

Aang took a deep breath in, too, but he let out a monstrous sneeze instead, almost pushing him off the pier. "I think that 'thin layer of earth' is called dust, Bumi."

Bumi let out a big laugh and said, "Same thing my dear boy, although we really should work on your sneezing, it's a dead give away that you're an Airbender."

"Like you're one to talk! Won't someone notice the King of Omashu just wondering around? Especially with your robes on," Aang said, pointing at Bumi's gaudy attire.

"I'm already taking care of that," Bumi replied, with a devious grin.

By this time the two of them had made it into the heart of seaside market. Bumi was scanning each shop for something to buy. They went back and forth down the aisles, but Bumi was constantly shaking his head, as if searching for one shop in particular. Aang grew tired of his antics quickly; worrying that Bumi would be worse now then back on the ship. Eventually, in one of the side alley, Bumi said, "Ah hah! There it is!"

Bumi disappeared for only a few minutes and when he returned he was almost unrecognizable. Bumi had shed his plush robe for a coarse tunic, he replaced his royal headwear with a ratty straw hat, and apparently he had purchased a walking cane. His transformation was complete; he had gone from royalty to poverty in the blink of an eye. Bumi did a quick turn around and asked, "So, Aang. What do you think?" The Avatar stared with wide eyes at his mentor, "Bumi, how the hell did you do all that so fast?"

"Oh never mind, sonny. We've got more important things to do than admire my fashion sense. Look over there, it seems our warrior is ready," Bumi said pointing his crooked finger towards hills past the market. Against the bright sun, Aang could just make out the slim silhouette.

Butterflies burst into his stomach, _This is actually happening. How am I going to face Suki?_ The sensation in his stomach deepened when he thought, _How am I going to face Katara? Can't believe Bumi's making me do this, I'm so not ready._

As they meandered through the market, Aang tried to stall Bumi, pointing out interesting souvenirs or clothing. He tried to convince Bumi that he too needed a disguise if was going to be undercover, but his mentor insisted that this was much more important and that the Avatar's disguise would take much longer.

Eventually, they reached the bottom of the hill and Aang's heart began to race. He looked upward, trying to see Suki's face, but the sun was masking her features. As they approached the girl, Aang took a few deep breaths to calm his nerves. When they got to peak of hill, Aang saw her leaning against the tree.

Aang's mouth hung slightly open when he realized it was Ty Lee in the elegant, crystal blue dress leaning on the tree. When she heard the footsteps stop, she turned around to face the Masters and she smiled thinly at the Avatar's reaction and asked, "What? Not who you were expecting, Aang?" Bumi shared the Kyoshi Warrior's look of amusement, happy to see Aang's surprise. Aang stammered for few seconds, trying to put his thoughts into words, "But you're—and not—but why—what are yo—Bumi, what the hell is going on? I thought Suki would be my sidekick," Aang said, quickly faced Bumi, hoping to hide the soft red color that was filling his cheeks. The Avatar needed a moment to sort out what he was feeling. For some reason, he got the sensation of butterflies in his stomach, and that worried him. "Sidekick! I am nobody's sidekick! The only time you get to call me that is when I kick your sides in!" she yelled, taking an aggressive step toward him.

"What? No, no, I didn't mean _sidekick_, I—I mean partner. You know, someone by my side, someone to rely on?" Aang said quickly, flustered at the sudden change of events. Ty Lee let out soft chuckle and wide grin and said, "I'm just playing with you, Aang. I'm normally not one to get that angry. But you do get cute when you're rattled," as she pinched his cheeks and giggled. Aang took a cautious step back as the butterflies rocketed around his insides.

"Well time to get a move on, there's much work to be done today! Now then, Aang lead the way," Bumi encouraged. Aang's eyes nervously trailed the long U-shaped hill that separated the seaport from the Lower Ring. A few more miles towards the walls and the training academy that Aang feared would come into view. Ty Lee, tried to encourage the Avatar, reassuring him that seeing his friends would be a good thing, something to look forward to. But she didn't know what happened there only a month ago, Aang's broken heart stay lay scattered on those ground, and he was in no hurry to revisit it. When they within a few hundred feet of the entrance, Bumi finally interrupt to said, "Well this reunion is touching and all, but Aang has some work to do before this day is up. I assume you're still busy with your training, Ty Lee?"

"Yes, but I'm making great process!" she replied with enthusiasm.

"As I expected. I'm very glad you able to make it out here to help Aang. And although he doesn't seem like it right now, I'm sure he appreciates it, too." Aang was deep in his thoughts at the moment, trying to figure out what was so out of place. Bumi continued, "So if you would so kind as to return to training, it is time for Aang to face his fears."

Ty Lee bowed to Bumi and gave Aang a quick hug while saying, "I'll catch you later, Mr. Avatar. Best of luck with Bumi." She released him, gave him a wink, and sprinted down the hill.

"I don't think I'm ready for this, Bumi," Aang said with tremor in his voice.

"Facing Katara or being with Ty Lee," Bumi asked with sly grin.

"Both."

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara squinted at the trio, trying to get a better look at them. Unfortunately, their backs were to her and she was much too far away to discern who they might be. Yet, she had a feeling they were important somehow, maybe they were looking for somewhere to send their children. At any rate, Katara hurried down the hill to find the rest of Gaang. She desperately hoped everyone was done teaching their lessons by now.

Katara walked into the kitchen to put away the food she had carried from the market. But something was out of place, usually by now Suki had started dinner. And yet, the kitchen was empty, no dishes were out, no food was cut up. A shiver ran down her spine when she realized that it was like ghost town inside the academy. Even walking through corridors she couldn't hear a single word. She stopped stocked the cupboard and decided to take a look outside. She took a step into the Waterbending Arena and paused. No one, not a sound came from the ten-acre plot of Waterbending heaven. She walked up next to the big elm tree and scanned the foliage for someone, anyone. Something was definitely off. She tiptoed through land, avoiding all the places she knew would be loud, the streams, the underbrush, the swarm of mosquitoes.

She kept investigating, she was so sure that something was off in her arena. Her heart stopped when she realized where she was; she hadn't been back in this spot since that terrible day. She walked cautiously toward to lake, inspecting herself in the placid water. Her heart stopped when she saw herself, her brain took a mental trip back to that black day. Ever so slowly, she turned around, facing the elm tree. And there he was, mediating under the tree she had froze him to. Tears starting running down her eyes when she realized that this was last place she had seen her Avatar.

Aang opened his eyes gradually and placed his hand on the ground, pushing himself to his feet. He really wasn't sure how to start this conversation. Although he was certain that he wasn't going to forgive Katara for what she had done. Even now, that painful image would flash across eyes whenever he saw someone kissing. But still, for some odd reason he couldn't full let go of her. Bumi had said confronting her would be the best way to break, but Aang wasn't so sure. He felt so many different, conflicting emotions when he was around her: pain, sorrow, hurt, and yet there was still a remainder of tenderness, comfort and even love. Aang's head throbbed just thinking about her, and now having to face her was making him sweat nervously. She could be so unpredictable, especially recently. He took a sharp breath in, and slowly opened his eyes, as if sensing her present across the lake. She stared at him with amazement and shock, and a bit of gratefulness. Her eyes beamed forward, gazing deeply into Aang's smoky eyes. Tears filled her mesmerizing blue eyes, as she jumped across the lake, adeptly freezing tiny platforms within jumping distance. Aang stood with his mouth slight agape as Katara quickly made her way across placid water and then slowly walked up the beach. They stood awkwardly, Aang with all his weight on one foot and Katara with one hip cocked out and a hand placed on it. They stared at each other as fighters would, sizing up their opponent.

Katara was the first let up, she let a tear form in her eyes as she slowly walked towards her Avatar. She saw him take a cautious step backward, so she flashed him a smile to let him know she wasn't going on attacking him this time. "Can't believe your back here. I-I talked about going after you, but the others said to wait and-and I didn't think could, but I don't have to now. Because you're here! Aang, you're here! You came back!" Katara said, letting the smile transform into a toothy grin as the tears streamed down her cheeks. She was walking faster towards him, her mind racing, trying to figure if she should hug him or kiss him. But before she could completely lost in her thoughts, Aang took another step back. Katara froze as she realized that Aang wasn't ready to forgive her. And then something else popped into her mind, something that gave her hope. _Maybe he didn't see it; maybe he's just mad that I attacked him._ Katara quickly tried to apologize for her irrational behavior, "Aang, I'm really sorry about what happened last time. Something just came over me, I don't know, I-I couldn't stop myself."

Aang's nostrils flared at the thought of that. He could imagine the soft smile that Katara gave Haru right before she leaned in. He took another step back, as if reacting to the mental image. He felt like running away, like nothing he could say would make him feel better, like there was nothing left to say at all. But something kept him planted, something so familiar about this girl, something in those majestic eyes that he had first when she found him in the iceberg.

Katara's eyes widen as she saw Aang retreat farther, she hurriedly tried to apologize again, "Aang, you have understand, I didn't mean to do it! It's just that you were gone for _so_ long I wasn't sure if you ever coming back. I missed you so badly and you didn't even say goodbye, Aang! How was suppose to react when you came back?!"

"Definitely not by kissing Haru!" Aang shouted with venom in voice, taking an aggressive step forward. But Aang's anger quickly subsided when he remembered Bumi's advice about letting his emotions impair his judgment. Staying even-minded was proving to be a lot harder than he thought.

Katara's heart stopped. Her world was falling apart. Even though she thought he knew about the kiss, hearing it from his mouth was so much worse. All the pain and grief she had caused him appeared on his face. She could imagine him seeing her and Haru's lips touching and the heart wrenching feeling he must have gone through. Memories of that horrible dream came flashing back and tears started to fill her eyes as she realized all the pain she had put him through.

Aang could see Katara becoming upset, and suddenly his anger towards her vanished. There was no need to be hateful toward her; what she chose to do was her own decision and now it was time for Aang to accept it.

Katara stammered out an apology, trying to voice her regret, "Aang, I—I'm so sor—I can't even begi—You have to underst—It was Haru not me!" She grew more and more flustered as blood rushed to her face. She was caught off-guard when Aang smiled softly back at her. "It's okay, Katara. What's done is done. Now we can both move on."

Katara stared back at him with wide eyes, "Wha—What?! I don't want to move on, Aang! That was a mistake and I need you to know that. I didn't even what was happening until after _he_ kissed _me_."

Aang held his hand up, and responded, "Katara, it's alright. If you want Haru, you can have him. Don't let me get in way." The Waterbender couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Are you even listening to me, Aang? I don't want any part of Haru! I want you back in my life. I've been so lonely without you, so can you just forgive me? I know what I did was stupid and irrational, but I just really want to have you back!"

Aang flashed a sad smile at the beautiful Waterbender, "I don't think that's a good idea. I think it's time for both of us to move on. Even if that doesn't mean Haru, I think it would be best if we gave this a rest."

"How can you say that, Aang? How can you want to leave me behind? Don't you care enough about me to stay? And don't give me that crap about leaving for my safety. I was fully prepared to roaming the world tracking you down so you dare, not even for a second, think that leaving is going to keep me safe."

Aang took a moment to think and gather himself. He needed Katara to understand that life would be different. "I think this is it, Katara. We should go our separate ways from now on."

Blood rushed to her face again as she shouted, "Even after all we've been through?! Even after freeing you from that iceberg? Even after traveling the world together? Even after defeating the Fire Nation and Ozai? And now you think you can just waltz off as if nothing ever happened between us?!"

Aang walked forward took Katara's hands, rubbing his thumb softly on the back of her hands. He looked deep into her stormy blue eyes and she gazed back into his calm gray clouds. Ever so slowly her heart rate and breathing dropped. Aang tried to explain himself again, "I can't be with you Katara, not now and not ever. I can't be worrying about your safety while you're with me. And I know, I _know_, you are the strongest Waterbender and I know you can keep yourself safe, but what happens we come across a Swamp Monster, or a Combustion Man. I need to be sure that you're far away from any harm that I might bring to you. Bumi said that the next few years will be intense. Lots of training and not much time for anybody else in my life. I have a duty, Katara, to duty to everyone, not just you. I need to be ready when an Azula or an Ozai pops up again, and believe it will happen. Hopefully by then I'll be more ready and willing to do what's necessary to stop them before they start Hundred Years' War."

Katara's head dropped as Aang spoke, she felt defeated. Aang was stubborn when it came to someone safety, and she feared that was in fact the end for them. After he finished, she asked, "But you can still visit, right? And I can come to see you, too? You can't just train endlessly, Bumi must give you time off."

Aang smiled at Katara's thought and responded with, "I'm Bumi has plans for me and I don't think he'll approve of it. He really wants a clean break…" Aang trailed off, unhappy with what he just said.

"But it's your choice," Katara argued, "You're the Avatar, not Bumi! You can do whatever you want to, you don't need to listen to his every word!"

"But he's also my friend and mentor. He's a hundred years older than you, Katara, he knows what he's talking about, and I trust him completely."

"Can you honestly just leave me? And never see my again, _ever_," Katara asked, shocked by the apathy Aang was displaying.

"Of course it's going to be hard, Katara!" Aang said, his voice rising slightly, "But it _has_ to be done, there's no other way! And I know it's unfair, but I have to for the sake of everyone else; they need me to protect them when the time comes."

Katara withdrew her hands and backed away from the Airbender. "Fine, Aang. Then this is it. This is goodbye." She turned and walked away without another word. Aang stared at her back as she receded into the foliage. Aang's breathing increased when he realized what had just happened. Katara, the one who saved him from his icy prison, the girl he had fallen in love with had disappeared from his life forever. He started to panic and desperately wanted to call out her name and follow her and apologize and run off together. They could lead their own life, away from everybody else. They could travel across world; spend time in the Air Temples, at the Poles, anywhere they wanted. He took a step forward and then froze. His thoughts traveled back to the people he had meet during his journey, all those people with whose parents, siblings, friends who killed in the war that Aang too irresponsible to stop. He couldn't, wouldn't, let that happen again. He had to devote himself to the world and help them along during this rare time of peace. He let out a deep breath that didn't know he was holding in. He walked slowly back the way he came.

* * *

**I know this might be a heart-wrenching chapter and definitely not what you were hoping, but it's all just preparation for romance. Please stick with me; Katara and Aang will be happily in love in a few chapters. Remember to follow my story and me so you get notified when I update!**

**I've been thinking about changing the title, any thoughts? How does "True Love Never Dies" sound? (I know it's cliché, and it doesn't seem like it fits considering this chapter, but trust me it will)**

**Please review with any thoughts you have! (keep in mind that the fluff is coming, i'm just building lots and lots of tension so that it will be very emotional when they do get back together!)**


	18. Mundi

**Disclaimer: I do not own AtlA. =[**

**Hey guys! I know it's been awhile, but here's the next chapter! In case you don't feel like re-reading the other chapters, here's a very brief summary: Aang and Katara are through due to Bumi's orders. Aang understands why Bumi doesn't Aang to have "someone special" in his life, but the Avatar is still upset. Katara is furious, who knows what she'll do next. **

**And for those who need more of a refresher (including myself), here's a quick (haha) synapsis of the FanFic so far (feel free to skip to the actual chapter):**

**Aang's and Katara's relationship had rough start with Sokka's rejection of their bond due to the inherent danger of Aang's duty as Avatar. Aang nobly decided to leave for the Fire Nation without Katara and without saying goodbye to anyone. Aang is constantly distracted during his six weeks in the Fire Nation Capital, and so the board members of the Peace Movement allow him a leave to reconnect with the Gaang. Toph used her family's resources to set up the Avatar Academy, which helped Katara forget about Aang for a while. Aang made a ****dramatic**** entrance at Ba Sing Se by pretending to be a mysterious villain and fighting the Gaang. Katara is having trouble forgiving Aang for leaving so abruptly. And of course Katara and Aang have that dramatic fight in which Aang refuses to actually fight. Sokka, Toph, and Teo each spend some time with the recovering Avatar while Katara reflects on her violent actions. Katara gets isolated from the Gaang because the fight. Aang recovers, gets his glider back from Teo, and finds Katara kissing Haru. Aang heads back to the Fire Nation Capital without talking to Katara. Katara freaks about Haru kissing her. Back at the Capital, Aang hears that the Dai Li have rescued Long Feng back in Ba Sing Se. He, Bumi, and Ty Lee will be positioned in the city to covertly learn about any plots there might be. When the Gaang tells Katara that Aang left, she has another breakdown. Bumi and Aang spend some time bonding on their way back to the Earth Kingdom. Bumi tries to help Aang with the last charka, but instead the Avatar locks it. Once they arrive in Ba Sing Se, Bumi forces Aang to break things off with Katara, hoping that will enable Aang to freely accept his Avatar duties. And then…**

* * *

Mundi

Aang didn't know what to do with himself, the girl of his dreams had just walked out of his life because of him. What would be his drive to protect the world this time? Maybe Bumi was wrong, maybe having someone to fight for meant you would fight harder. Panic started to fill the Avatar as he imagined what life would be like without Katara, never talking to her, or even seeing her, ever again. His heart started to pound at the thought of that, and slowly he sat down on the grassy ground and meditated.

He needed to talk to his past lives and see what their advice would be. Though he had talked to them about love previously, he felt the need to do so again. Perhaps it was because the bleakness of his future was finally clear to him. He would not be given the chance to love anyone. His duty was to world, not to his own personal desires. And although he could accept this, he still wanted to lead a semi-ordinary life. He slowed his breathing and focused on easing his heart rate, recalling the wisdom of his past lives…

-"There you are!" Bumi exclaimed, pounding through the foliage, Aang winced at the break in silence. "I've been looking all over for you, Mr. Avatar," Bumi said, looking down at the previously meditating Airbender. Aang glanced up at Bumi with an irritated look in his eyes, "Bumi, I was just about to talk to Roku." The old king gave the bald monk an apologetic look, "Oh sorry, Aang, but I think its time to go. I'm sure you're not exactly happy at the moment; back I think it would be best to get a move on. There are many things you have to learn, not much time to learn them. I know you're young, perhaps too young, but I feel it's best if you learn from me while I'm still around," Bumi giggled slightly at his own mortality. Aang let out a soft sigh and floated lightly to his feet, following Bumi out of the Waterbending arena.

"Would it be alright for me to talk to the others at least?" Aang said, desperate to have some form friendly communication during this trip. Bumi gave the Airbender a slight shake of the head without an actual explanation. Aang hung his head in defeat, afraid of what Bumi had in store for him. Leaving the Gaang would be tough, but abandoning them without a proper a goodbye would be terrible. He had learned that hard way about how last words could make or break a relationship. He hoped that his friendship with the rest of group would be spare during his time with Bumi.

They walked silently through the Academy, avoiding the students at all costs. Bumi figured having the Avatar at the Academy would only cause commotion, something they didn't need at the moment. They continued to walk silently, with their heads looking down to avoid a scene, all the way to the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se, until they reached the ornate building they would call home for the next few years. By the time they reached home, the sun had sunk behind the grand walls and lit torches lined the streets. Aang entered the wonderfully decorated house and wandered around until he found a room he could call his own. To his surprise, his glider and extra clothes were already in the room. He looked at the comfy, inviting bed, and then back at his possession. He slugged over to glider and picked it up, carefully feeling the grooves and scratch marks from prior use. His fingers eventually found the inscription half down the dark cedar shift. Aang smiled sadly as he remembered what it said, _Only an Airbender's Spirit is lighter than air_. At moment, Aang felt his spirit weighed more than Appa.

_Appa_. A tear sprang forth from his eye as realized just how far away from home he truly war. Aang took the glider and whipped it open, once again admiring the Airbender's signature orange silk. He stroked it absentmindedly and realized this glider held the remnants of old life in the Temples. He closed the majestic glider and slid into bed, holding this piece of home close to his heart.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Aang woke up to someone poking his nose, prodding his cheeks and tugging his ears. He cracked his eyelids to let the blazing sunlight into his eyes, and was met by Ty Lee's bright face not two inches from is own. He let out an embarrassing whimper of fear and shock that she giggled out. The blood rushed to his face when he realized that he was only half clothed and Ty Lee was hovering over him. "Uhh… what are you doing, Ty Lee?" Aang said nervously, rubbing his eyes to avoid the close proximity.

"Waking you up, silly! The whole house shakes when you snore, and Bumi and I have been up for hours so he decided it was time for you join us," she said with a broad smile on her face.

"Okay, I'll be out in a minute," Aang replied with a forced smile. She gave him a quick wink and skipped out of his room. The Airbender let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He rolled out of bed and searched it for his top, which he had unconsciously taken off during the sweltering night. When he finally did find it, he put it on and walked back over to his glider lying on the silk sheets. He held it in his hands for a minute, admiring the craftsmanship that Teo had put into it. It actually felt like an Airbender relic, and in a way, it was. He resolved to keep it close at hand during the next few months.

On his way to breakfast he bumped into many servants and was shocked at the sheer opulence of house they were staying in. By candlelight, it looked like a normal house, but with the windows open and the sunlight bursting through, the riches of estate were obvious. Intricate gold and green tapestry hung from the wall, vases of gold and bronze on stone pedestals lined the hallway, the faint incense of jasmine lingered in every room.

When he finally did arrive at the dining room, Bumi and Ty Lee were seated at a table for sixteen. They look comical together, a hunkering mass of old muscles and slender figure of pure femininity gathered around table piled with an array of breakfast foods. Bumi looked up from his food and beckoned the Avatar to seat next to him while saying, "Ah, Aang, how nice of you to join us. I hope you had a good rest, you'll it need for today," with a crooked smile. He replied with a nervous smile and said, "I always need rest, Bumi. Breakfast looks…good." His stomach growled at the sight of so much food, he felt like he hadn't even in days. He leaned forward and reached across the table to grab for some bread.

Bumi swiftly grabbed the bread basket from Aang and said, "Ah ah ahhh, Aang. Before you go stuffing yourself, we need to talk." Aang let out a huge sigh and leaned back into his chair. He put his elbows on the table and cradled his head, face down, and muffled, "About what, Bumi?" The old king let out a little chuckle at the Avatar's childish attitude. "I know what you did yesterday wasn't easy, Aang, and I respect your courage in doing what had to be done." Bumi adopted a more serious tone as he continued, "I've been in shoes a long, long time ago and I know it's not easy obeying what other people tell you to do, especially old people. But trust me when I say that I _do_ know what's best, at least in this case I do. A bond like yours and Katara's isn't easy to come by and I understand that, but so does our… enemies. They'll be quiet for these next few months, even years, slowly gathering warriors, information, planting spies among our ranks, and I can't be worrying about the relationship of the young Avatar and his girlfriend. I know that sounds cruel, but that's just the way it has to be for now. Perhaps when you're older…" Bumi drifted off into his long past.

Aang let the words wash over, not particularly paying too much attention. He did what he had to do, and that was that. No need to go reminding him of his and Katara's "bond" that they used to share. Aang perked up only at the very end of Bumi's speech, _Perhaps when you're older_. This gave him something he hadn't felt in quite some time: hope. Maybe, after years of dedication, he could have some piece of solace and love in his life after all. But when Aang looked up to ask Bumi when that day would come, he could Bumi was lost in his thoughts. Aang sighed heavily, imagining himself being Bumi's age and still all alone. His stomach growled to remind him of his hunger, so he silently and slowly extended his arm to grab a piece of bread while Bumi was still reminiscing.

Ty Lee never looked away from Aang during Bumi's little speech. She could see that pain that eventually give way to a smile and what looked like hope. She felt bad for the young Avatar, having to give him his own happiness for the sake of others. She thoughts back to her childhood days with her six sisters. She thought of all the good times, friendships, and attention she had lost to them. Her parents treated her like a number; children at school would only talk to her in order to meet her sisters. Even though she looked exactly like each one of them, everyone seemed to like them more than her. Nothing she ever did could ever distinguish her from her sisters. She thought back to Aang's pained face and realized it was the face of an isolated soul. No one could ever claim to fully understand what he was going through. Being alone was one of the most terrifying things for Ty Lee and she had to live with for years of childhood. She snapped back when she saw Aang reaching for the bread. She quietly pushed the basket closer to Aang, whose stomach only grew louder.

Bumi snapped back when he heard the roar of tiger-bear that came from Aang's stomach. "Wha—oh sorry, Aang." Bumi grabbed the basket and shoved into Aang's face and went back to thinking of his long past.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara tried to be strong, to show Aang that she didn't need him; so she walked away without so much as a glimpse back. Her last memory of the Airbender would be his shocked, pained face. _He deserves it_, she thought, _after all he's put me through, he deserves the pain and anger. It's time for him to feel what I felt, to have his world completely crushed_. But even as thought this, she knew she would regret this somewhere down. She had done a good job keeping the tears, but she could feel them starting to well up. She turned to walk to Suki's room, but she stopped herself. She took a few deep breaths, quelled the fear and uncertainty within herself, pushed the tears back down, and instead of going to Suki's, she decided to leave the Academy for a bit; she needed to clear her head.

She walked the chaotic street of Ba Sing Se, taking in the sights and the smells, trying to avoid thinking of that guy. She wandered in and out of shops, pausing when something caught eye. She meandered this way for quite some time. She didn't even realize when she'd reached the shady part of the market. Stores and shops were scattered amidst dark alleyways.

She entered one shop and spotted a Water Tribe symbol and her heart started racing. She reached out for it when a hand came from nowhere and slapped her hard on the wrist. "No touchy!" screamed the owner in a high, squeaky voice. "If you wa' see it, you nee' pay fo' it!" Katara recoiled in shock and held her wrist close to her body. She squinted with confusion at the owner, who repeated himself louder and higher pitched, "If you wa' _see_ it, you nee' _pay_ fo' it! T'ree gol' pieces, o' else, git out!" By the time he finished, he face was only a few inches from Katara, who promptly walked out of the shop because she had no money on her.

As she stepped into the dark alleyway, she wondered what Waterbending scroll could be worth three gold pieces. The moment she turned a corner she confront with a behemoth of man, over six feet tall and wide enough to block the tight alleyway.

"What's a pretty girl like you, doing in a place like this?" he asked in a deep, booming voice.

"Just leaving," she said under her breath as she quickly doubled back.

Right then, a slim figure jumped down from one of the low roof and proclaimed, "Oh no you are not, you are coming with us," with a sly, devious smile. Before she could even raise her hands, the giant of man embraced her and lifted her easily of the ground and onto his shoulder. She started to scream, but the lanky man tied a gag around her mouth.

They started walked down the dark alleyway when the mammoth gave a deep-bellied laugh and said, "Who'da thunk it woulda been this easy?"

The slim one had a grimace on his face and said with disdain, "Could you tried to be a little bit more civilized? You were doing so well back there, Crunk."

The hulking man shrugged his shoulders, sending a large piece of muscle and bone into Katara's stomach who groaned at the pain. "Me sorry, Rata."

The thin one sighed with resignation and said, "That is okay, Crunk; I know it is just in your nature. How about we sped things along, we do not want to attract any attent—"

A leg flew in from above and caught the slim one square in jaw. He stumbled over and hit the alley wall hard. Before Katara could see where the leg originated from, the monster-sized man dropped her onto the brick floor, where her head slammed into it with a sickening thud.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Bumi gave the two of them a little time off after breakfast, which Aang felt was kind of weird. Although, Bumi hadn't really been himself during breakfast, the constant daydreaming was unlike the elderly king. But Aang graciously accepted the free time, which he used to acquaint himself with the Upper Ring.

He stood on the porch, gazing at the decorative houses and the beautiful trees, feeling the soft earth under his feet. He looked down and stared at the "road," which consisted of finely ground earth, essentially dust. He bent and removed his well-worn sandal and placed them in the front yard, figuring they would be safe. He walked slowly on his soft feet, feeling the dust stick to them. He closed his eyes as he walked, which brought a quick sensation of dizziness, but that subsiding as he started to sense what was around him. He realized that his soft, tip-toeing way of walking didn't allow him to sense very far, so he tried to adopt a more Toph-esque of walking. He started driving his feet forcefully into the ground, which sent a pain shooting through his leg, but he only grunted and kept his eyes tightly shut. Again and again he struck the earth, feeling the vibrations shake through the ground, up to the houses, and even up part of the trees. He continued this way for a minute or two, until Ty Lee giggled gently and asked softly, "What, exactly, are you doing?"

Aang's eyes flew open and he stifled a scream of surprise. He took a quick step back when he realized Ty Lee was hanging, upside-down, from a low-hanging tree branch that reached across the road. She was hanging only a few inches from his face.

Butterflies raced through his stomach, "Wha—Oh! I was uhh… I was… sensing?" he managed to stutter out.

Ty Lee let out a soft chuckle and, with a beaming smile, said, "Not too well, I can see."

Aang's cheeks burned with embarrassment, "Well it only works if you were on ground!"

"Oooor, you could just use your eyes!" Ty Lee said with soft giggle, pushing herself closer to the Avatar's face.

They locked eyes for a second, but Aang quickly looked down. He smiled quickly and leaped into the air and landed softly on the end of branch Ty Lee was hanging from. The branch bended slowly and Ty Lee quickly lost her smile. She kicked her body and snapped it forward lunged into the air, skillfully grasping the next branch, as the one Aang was still on fell to the ground.

The Airbender had his mouth open as she executed this move with unbelievable grace. He hardly had time to realize that he falling back onto the soft earth. The branch hit the ground with a soft thud, but a slow backflip before it did and landed a few feet from the fallen branch. Ty Lee smiled and said, "Well aren't you fancy, Mr. Avatar?" Again she kicked back, but this time she launched herself into the air and did a double backflip and rotated in midair. She land a few inches from Aang's barefoot, with barely a sound.

"How's that for fancy?" Ty Lee said, with twinkle in her eye.

Aang smiled back, looking into her eyes for a moment. He bent down and quickly sprang back up, leaping to the very top of tree. When he grabbed the highest branch, he savored the view for a few second and looked back down to playfully taunt Ty Lee, but she was gone.

A few moments later, she crawled up beside the Avatar, slightly out of breath. They looked at each other for only moment, and then Aang cast his eyes over Ba Sing Se. From this vantage point, they could see most of the great city. He could see the vast labyrinth of roads and alleys, the walls separating the different section of the city; he could even see the faint outline of the Outer Wall.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Ty Lee said, in a strangely calm and pensive tone. "I can't believe I wasn't actually willing to break through those walls and capture this city. To think of the destruction that could've happened if you didn't stop that drill. Thousand of innocent people would've died, just so Ozai and Azula could rule the world." Her tone quickly changed into anger.

Aang turned to face the slender girl and said, "There's no need to mad about that Ty Lee. Ozai was just a bad person and Azula was, too. The important thing is that it's in the past and they're both locked up for good."

Ty Lee looked away, "Well it wasn't just them. I was willing—I _wanted_ to help her. I truly wanted to the Fire Nation to rule, I just didn't realize what it would take to get there. Azula promised a world of peace and unity after the Fire Nation conquered all corners of the world, and I believed her; I bought every word that came out of that filthy mouth of hers."

Aang put a tentative hand on her shoulder, "You don't need to beat yourself up over it Ty Lee. When it came time to choose what was right, you made the right choice. You set aside your allegiance with Azula and the Fire Nation and choose to help fight the Fire Lord."

"That's easy for you to say, Aang. You actually fought the Fire Lord; I didn't do anything! I was stuck in that prison the whole time you were out sacrificing your life for the entire world," Ty Lee said hotly.

"You can't blame that on yourself, Ty Lee! It's definitely not your fault that you were looked away when that all happened, and I'm completely sure that if you were free, you would have been right with us fighting the Fire Nation," Aang said, trying to convince Ty Lee. She didn't respond.

Aang let out a soft sigh and continued, "I know exactly how you feel, Ty Lee. I was frozen for a hundred years while the world went to chaos. I can't believe how naïve I was, as if running away would stop myself from being the Avatar. But what really matters that I did make a difference. I choose to come back and face my destiny, which was terrifying beyond belief, but I did it. Twelve years old and defeated the Fire Lord…" Aang trailed off back to the fight of his life.

Ty Lee sniffled slightly. "I guess you're right, Aang. We're more alike than I thought," she said with a small smile.

"Yea…I guess we are."

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

Katara slowly gained consciousness. Her head was pounding and her body was bouncing up and down. When she finally realized what was going on, her eyes flew open and stared at the young man carrying her, running the alley. Suddenly, she pushed him off and landed hard on the ground.

Her capture chuckled a little and panted, "Now, why did you do that?" Looking down, he offered his hand to help get her back on her feet, but she instituting retreated against the wall. He panted some more, before slowly coming closing toward, "Now, be like that. I'm only trying to hel—" She lashed out with her leg, sweeping his leg out from under him. He fell down quickly, but deftly caught himself with his hands before falling to the ground. "Really? After I saved you from Crunk and Rata. This is the thanks I get?"

Katara gave him a puzzled looked, "You were trying to save me? Why?"

"Well, whenever I see Crunk with a beautiful lady over shoulder, I always assume the worse," he said with a soft chuckle.

Katara was too shocked to pick up on the compliment. She was trying to work through the haze after being dropped on the ground. She did vaguely remember someone attacking the huge and slim men.

The young man was back on his feet and was holding out his hand, "Let me help you." She cautiously lifted up hand and placed it in his. He held hers for a moment, feeling the cool, soft hands. Then, abruptly, he yanked all the way back into his arms and continued walking in one fluid motion. Before she could speak, he said, "You just got dumped on your head, the last thing you want to be doing is walking around." She closed her mouth when she realized that he was in fact right. Even the slow rise and fall of his gait was making her dizzy. She looked up at his face; there were fresh cuts and bruises on it as well as his exposed shoulders and arms. Before she could inquire about the injuries, her head started to pound unbearably. As she slipped into the darkness, she faintly heard him said, "Oh, by the way, my name is Mundi."

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**So Mundi is my first original character, hopefully you'll learn to love him, too. Again, I apologize for how long it took to finish this chapter, but I've been trying to put together an outline of the whole FanFic which has taken some time. I'm sure this chapter has lots of grammatical errors, but please try to bear with me. **

**Please write a review!**


	19. SP: Chapter 19

**Here's just a part of next chapter, something to keep you going until I finish the chapter. It's mostly focused on the new character, Mundi. Enjoy!**

**PS: I don't own AtlA**

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Sneak Peek: Chapter 19

Katara gradually drifted wake, safe in her bed back at the academy. She slowly pushed himself up with her hands. Her eyes flew up as she groped her head, trying not to scream from the agonizing pain on the back of her head. She started to become dizzy so she lowered herself back in her bed. Her eyes went out of focus for a few moments, until she squeezed them shut, which sent a shock of pain through her temple. She moaned softly, trying to remember what could possibly make her feel this awful.

Her memory was hazy at best. The only thing that remained crystal clear was the gut-wrenching pain of leaving Aang in the Waterbending arena. Even through the fog of her headache, she could still remember Aang's shocked face as she withdrew her hands and walked away from the boy of her dreams. A tear started to well in her eye, but she vicious wiped it away. She continued sifting through her memories. She left the academy to lose herself in the bustle of Ba Sing Se, and lose herself she did. She gradually remembered entering the shady part of town. Then it all hit her in a flash. A giant, a thin one, kidnapped and gagged, and then… saved? But by whom? Someone had saved her from that Crunk and Rata, but she couldn't quite remember. She vaguely remembered his face and voice. She definitely remembered trying to fight him. But what was his name…M-something.

A soft knock came at the door, and Suki slipped in without waiting for a response. She silently closed the door behind her and realized Katara was finally awake. "Thank the spirits, you're finally up!" Suki exclaimed.

Katara winced at the sound, as pain shot through her ears and settled on her brain. She groaned loudly while gently massaging her temple, "Please, not so loud," she said, barely audible.

Suki's eyes widened slightly as she whispered, "Oh. I didn't realize it would be that bad."

The Waterbender slowly opened her eyes again, letting the sunlight flood her pupils. She groaned again, this time at the intense light bursting into the room. "What is that bad?" she moaned.

"Your head, of course," Suki said, as she quietly tiptoed to get a better look.

Katara's fingers slowly made their way to the back of her head, where a bandage was cake with dried blood. She drew in a quick breath at the pain that emanating from the bandage. The room started to swirl around her, and she forcefully shut her eyes, met again with shearing pain in her temples. She slowly relaxed her body and her breathing until the aching subsided.

Suki stood frozen while Katara winced in agony, and the Kyoshi Warrior didn't dare move until the Waterbender seemed better. Then she finally made her way quietly to bedside, where she looked at Katara's pained face. "What…what happened to you, Katara," she asked in a whisper, "We spent the whole night looking for you and then you just appeared in your bedroom…" Suki trailed off, unable to comprehend where she had been and how she had received such a blow to the head.

Katara mumbled what she could remember to Suki, who stared at her in disbelief. "So how did you end up back here?" Suki asked incredulously.

"I…I don't know. All I remember is being carried by that guy and then I woke up here. My head's starting to hurt, Suki, I need some rest," Katara said, closing her eyes.

"Sure, sure. Rest up, Katara. Tell me if you need anything. Maybe you should visit the infirmary. I'm sure some soothing Waterbending could ease the pain of—" Suki stopped as Katara's soft breathing filled the room. She was already asleep before the Warrior could send for any help. Suki sighed softly, wondering why Katara would've wondered off into Ba Sing Se in the evening.

0ooo0ooo0ooo0ooo0

When Katara opened her eyes again, the soft afternoon sun peaked through her wooden windows. She took a deep breath in and smelt the scent of dinner being prepared for the student. But something much stronger overtook that smell. The sweet odor of sugar-mint burst into her nose and her eyes opened widely when she realized someone was in the room with her. She slowly sat up in her bed, noting that the man's back was to her. She moved the sheets silently and tried to stand up, but before she could, he turned around. He wore a gleaming grin with pieces of green sugar-mint sticking to his smile. His muscles were toned and his skin a little bit lighter than hers. He shuffled forward and Katara stared back with look of terror; she was not strong enough to fend off someone like this. The man recognized her fright and quickly put up his hand and said softly, "Whoa, whoa there, Katara. No need to freak out. It's me, Mundi. Remember?"

Her brow furrowed as she briefly remembered the name, but not much else. She couldn't even remember his face, only his deep, silky voice. She slowed her breathing a little, realizing that he was one that saved her from the two man back in the alley. "Wha—what? How are you he—?" she stammered, trying to form a complete thought through her pounding headache. She starting to lose consciousness, so Mundi quickly rushed forward and gently laid her head on the pillow. "Don't move, Katara. You took a pretty bad blow to the head," he said in a whisper.

Up this close she could fully see his face in the afternoon sunlight. His eyes were a light gray and his hair was a thick and brown, tied up neatly in a short ponytail. A shadow of beard grew on his strong jaw line with a straight scar across his left cheekbone. His eyebrows were bushy and his nose was small but flared with energy and defiance. He lips were looked as red as a watermelon-peach and stood out against the white of his teeth and the tiny specks of green of the sugar-mint that he was constantly chewing. He backed off once he carefully laid her head down. He wore a dark blue, almost black sleeveless shirt, with a single white stripe of fur running diagonally from his shoulder. It clung to his sculpted chest, which rose and fell with each breath. She could see the fabric of a necklace, but the pendant was tucked under his shirt. Her eyes traveled to his arms, which were laced with veins and light brown hair that glowed in the sunlight. He wore black pants with more white stripes of fur running down the outer seams, which connected to his thin-soled shoes. Katara lost her breath when she realized just how handsome of a man was standing before her in the soft sunlight.

"Are—are you okay?" Mundi asked self-consciously.

"Hm? Oh yea. I'm just a little lightheaded is all," she replied, turning her head to hide her burning cheeks. Mundi smiled and asked, "How are the new bandages holding up?"

She quickly brought her hands to the back of her head and she realized it was no longer caked her blood. A new bandage had been wrapped all the way around her head to secure it.

"I'm sorry about the first one. I know it was pretty pathetic, but it was all I had at the time. Hopefully, this one holds up better."

"So it was you!" she said with a smile. And then it hit her, this boy is a complete a stranger. "How the hell do you know where I live? And how—how do you know my name?!" she started to raise her voice, completely aghast that she acted so cool while a total stranger was watching her sleep.

"Whoa, whoa! Hold on there, don't scream, Katara! First of all you'll hurt your pretty little head and second of all, I don't want the others to know I'm here."

"Well then, you'd better explain, and fast!" she said, contemplating if she could call out for someone.

"Okay, okay," he said, defensively. "Where to start…" he asked himself, in a barely audible whisper, tapping his forefinger against his red lips. "I have been roaming around the alleyways for quite sometime, and I've made many friends along with many enemies. We call that place the Labyrinth and my friends and I have done what we could to brighten it. It's plagued by disease and thieves, but it's so far away from Palace and the Upper Ring, that no one seems to care. Those two people who attacked you, Rata and Crunk, are a small part of the problem. They just wander around stealing things and wreaking havoc, but this time it was different. The way they followed you around and hide behind corners and in the shadows was something I've never seen them do before. Honestly, at first I didn't know what to think, but when I saw who they kidnapped I knew they had to be working for someone; someone who was pulling the strings. Normally, I wouldn't attack them, considering how big Crunk is and how surprisingly skilled Rata, but this time I just to; their prize was far too important to let them get away with it." He stopped to let these thoughts sink into Katara's pounding head.

She took a moment to process the information and then choose only one question to ask, one that truly bugged her: "How do you know who I am? I never told you my name and I've never even seen you before, so how do know me and where I live?"

Mundi took a deep breath in and chuckled softly with a smile. He shyly brought his hand to scratch the back of his head and said, "I've heard the rumors about you and what you've done and whom you're with. Those who fear you call you the Ice Queen; those who admire you call you the Water Princess. And the King to your majesty is the Avatar himself, the one who set the world free, the one who brought world peace to a scarred planet of warfare. Even though you both may be as young as I am, I still think you have chance to completely change our world for the better." He stopped when he realized the depressed look on the beautiful Waterbender's face.

_The King to your majesty_, she thought, looking down with a slight scowl, _that's definitely not the way I would put it_…

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**I know it's not much, but it'll have to do until I finish the chapter. **

**Take a few seconds to tell me what you think about Mundi. **


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